The Snow Turned into Rain
by BlackShadow875
Summary: [Complete!] Sacrifices are never meant to be forgotten, even if it is during Christmas. But can Danny cope with it, or will it force him to drastic measures?
1. The Brewing Storm

_**The Snow Turned into Rain**_

_A/N: Hello again, people! Another DP fanfic (second one, in fact). Once again, I hope you will enjoy this one, hopefully as much as I will enjoy writing it. For those reading this, I say again, thank you. Please send a review, no flames, but constructive criticism would be appreciated. This is somewhat different from my usual writing style, and I need feedback upon how it is._

_Once again, because I have to, to avoid getting sued..._

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Danny Phantom characters, they are owned by Butch Hartman. But the storyline is my own...don't use it without my permission._

_Before I start, I know I took some quotes, and I know that some of them may be off by a word here and there. But they're close enough...well, at least in my opinion._

_OK, I've spoken too much...on with the fanfic..._

_**Chapter 1 - The Brewing Storm**_

Everyone who had visited the town at some point has seen it.

After miles of seeing countryside, the twists and turns in the road finally led up to a large sign.

With large, bold, and colorful letters, it boasted of a city that was dubbed, "A Nice Place to Live!" If you continued down the path, it would lead you into the center of a large city...

After all, the town was named Amity Park. Fun places, such as Amity Pier, were one of many great places for the young crowd to hang out and relax, while enjoying a beautiful sunset over the water. The Nasty Burger, albeit well-known for creating a potentially deadly sauce, was also a hang-out for the young residents. Even video gamers could test their luck at the arcade located on the boulevard.

And it was nearing the end of November, which meant the holiday season was just around the corner. It was that time of year for people to spend countless dollars on gifts for those they cared about, bringing more happiness to the scene. Even though it wasn't December yet, the adolescents of Casper High were already thinking about the upcoming winter vacation and making plans.

Yes, it seemed that the name fit perfectly with the city.

But for a certain portion of the town, the word amity was a lost cause.

Despite all the talk of friendly atmosphere, Amity Park had a dark side. An area untravelled by most of the public and was left to fester in its own demise. It seemed to be getting worse every year.

The mayor thought of doing something about it, but never seemed to get around to it.

Welcome to the run-down district of the city. A forgotten and desolate area, the streetlamps here flickered on and off periodically. The once smooth streets of asphalt were cracked and torn up from poor maintenance over the years. That beautiful sunset could not be seen through the jungle of mice and rat infested buildings. Many people were afraid of going into that part of town because it was such a dangerous area.

Even police were afraid to go there. Crime here was so bad that police on duty usually flipped a coin to see who would be the one wandering the streets in that district, while the rest remained in the other areas of the town or the police station.

Not exactly your everyday paradise to live, right?

Try telling that to a certain girl...

In the beginning, she never thought she would even end up in this part of town, let alone live in it. But after all the hardships her and her father went through in the past year, it was the only place that she and her father could afford, something cheap enough in their price range. For her, being able to afford a home with these financial struggles was a paradise of her own.

Though many people didn't see it, Valerie Gray was a tougher person than others thought.

She lived with her father in the tiny three-room apartment. The longer she seemed to live there, the more she became used to the occasional leak in the ceiling or the continuous flicker of the ten-year old television set. And with the holidays fast approaching, an occasional breath of cold air flew through the cracks in the old building.

For some reason, however, that wind seemed strangely warm for the holidays...

That old television set gave the reason why, as it was turned onto the nightly news. From the blurred and poorly contrasted picture, one could make a very faint outline of the weather forecastings.

The weatherman's seemingly cheerful voice tried to break the bad news.

"There's a warm front coming in from the west, and that means possible rainstorms. Sorry folks, I know the holidays are approaching, but it seems that we're going to start this year with some rain." He laughed a little, his attempt to raise the spirit of the situation.

Light laughter followed from the anchorwoman, who seemed to be thinking along the same lines.

Valerie was doing pull-ups from a bare wooden bar hanging from the ceiling. The forecaster's attempt to make light with the current situaion made her sick. That rainstorm would probably force a hole in the already-cracked ceiling, possibly forcing them to live somewhere else...

But snow was also pretty bad. Between choosing whether to be wet or freezing cold, it was hard to determine what was the lesser of two evils.

And they couldn't afford a heater yet...

But the weather seemed to be the thing that was currently the least of her worries. She seemed very pissed at the moment at something else - there was only one thing on her mind right now as she continued listening to the anchorwoman's reports...

"Heh...thank you for that report. And here's some late-breaking news! It seems that Amity's famous resident Danny Phantom has risen in approval rating from the public after he recently saved a bus from falling after the driver lost control of the vehicle."

Those were it - the trigger words. Valerie stopped her pull-ups and looked at the television in rage. That name was the one thing she did NOT want to hear at the moment...

Danny Phantom...this was all HIS fault...he did all of this to her...he was responsible...

In fact, who knew...maybe he was the one who probably forced the bus to lose control, and then saved it himself to make it look good for the news...

As the news continued about the story about the rescue, she pretended not to hear it as she kept reminiscing of her past life.

She wasn't always this way...she actually had it all...

...before HE came into it...

She used to be rich...she could buy almost anything she needed, depending upon the level of her splurging.

How one ghost could ruin everything? It was beyond her knowledge. Either way, she hated them, which was the reason she was a ghost hunter.

During the times she wasn't hunting them, she was Valerie Gray, another teen at Casper High school, an African-American girl dressed in orange and yellow clothes and white shoes.

But when there was some ghost wreaking havoc, that outfit changed...

Her ghost hunter outfit was a skintight red suit, her face covered by a mask that could only be seen through one way. She could see people from inside the suit, but people could not see her eyes, unless in very bright light.

She seemed to become more edgy with each passing day, wishing to take out her revenge on the things she hated so much. Her father, of course, knew nothing about it during her early days as a ghost hunter - she kept it a secret.

Believing that this new behavior was still bitterness about adapting to a new life, her father had been telling her that she had to let it go. Things, of course, would never be the same, but he was quite persistent with that phrase, believing that eventually, "Time would heal all wounds."

She was quite stubborn because she wanted to cling onto the memories of that life she wanted desperately. But she knew that it would never be the same. After much personal conflict, she consented to start rebuilding her social life once again, hoping that she could get her mind back on track.

She knew, at least, that there was nowhere to go but up.

Sure, she was now starting to climb her way back onto the social spectrum, but as she continued her climb, she was starting to notice differences in her old friends. These people she thought she knew were, as she found out, very different. People like Paulina, Dash, and Kwan were extremely shallow in behavior. All they seemed capable of doing was simply have people judge them, to make themselves more vulnerable to the social world. Paulina was always obsessing about her looks, and Dash and Kwan were only interested in showing off their physical abilities.

Valerie pretended to be blind to those attributes at first, but as time moved on, it became more and more obvious that she had been hanging with the wrong crowd all along.

Though they were talking to her again, it was all superficial. She was rebuilding from absolutely nothing, and she seemed to be surrounded by those who were still lost in the other world, the world of fame and glory.

They didn't care for her. They only cared for their own, damn selves.

She wanted to find a new set of friends - she wasn't desperate, but she needed someone she could actually count on, because for some reason, now that she was poor, there wasn't a soul who seemed to be willing to listen to the actual _her;_ she was treated like an outcast.

But then came the day she came to know another outcast like herself...someone she had never thought she could see herself with.

In fact, Danny Fenton's friendship kind of hit her in the face unexpectedly.

She hated him in the beginning. He seemed to be getting in the way of everything, such as with an earlier project that involved a flour sack, and pretending to take care of it as if it were a child. Her boiling point seemed to be at an all-time high during that point, because Danny was her partner...

He was so insensitive...her grades were already at an all-time low and she was holding down two jobs...her ghost hunting and the Nasty Burger mascot, Nasty Ned...

She wanted him to take over most of the work taking care of the flour sack...after all, he didn't seem to do anything important, except hang out with his friends...that way, her grade could raise with his expertise...

Some partner _he_ was...he got angry and demanded she do her fair share...

That's why she hated him...he didn't know what her life was like with two jobs and school...she was already through enough, and now he was giving her more grief with this dumb project...she didn't have any time for this!

Memories flooded back to her...her own voice echoing the earlier thoughts of Danny...

_"...I got stuck with insensitive, uncaring, Danny FENTON!"_

There were rocks involved somehow, but she had long forgotten what that was all about. She could only remember the boiling rage inside of her at that moment...trapped in the Ghost Zone with that stupid teen ghost after she lost the flour sack from some ghost named Skulker...

Why they worked together was beyond her knowledge...she was only concerned of getting away from Skulker...

But the last-minute partnership worked...together they were able to escape the Ghost Zone.

Before they left, however, they had a conversation...she was holding the beat-up flour sack in her hands when she was speaking...

_"Well, at least it stopped crying..._(she turned to him)_...I guess I was a little harsh on you before. I never knew a ghost could be anything but trouble."_

The words he said next seemed true. _"That's because you never took time to know one."_

He offered a truce. Because he helped her before, she decided to take it...

She couldn't remember what happened next...he overshadowed her and she didn't remember anything else after that...she only remembered waking up in her bed...

And Fenton was right there, holding her Nasty Ned costume.

How he got in, she didn't care...one thing was for sure...

She was outraged. Thinking that his knowledge of her as Nasty Ned was to be used as blackmail, she snatched it out of his hands.

_"YOU BETTER NOT TELL ANYONE ABOUT THIS, YOU HEAR ME! YOU BETTER NOT!"_

But he wasn't...in fact, it was strange, but he just came for the flour sack. Nothing else.

_"Wow,"_ he had said, eyeing the mascot costume. _"I didn't know this was the kind of job you were talking about."_

Valerie's voice echoed that of the ghost kid. _"That's because you never took the time to know me."_

Danny seemed to take the sentence to heart.

In fact, that was when the talking started...

He offered to take over her job as Nasty Ned one day to say he was sorry for acting the way he did during that project.

And even more defining moments...he started talking to her many times after the project was over...she had expected him, to like all others, stop talking because he was no longer involved with her...but for some reason, he did...

An odd feeling passed through her as the talking continued. Their conversations were a little clumsy, but for some reason, she was kind of liking it...

Then came that one day...the day that she started talking back...

While Danny was hiding from his enemy, Dash, he ran under the same table that she was under. She was avoiding Nathan, a geek who had a helpless crush on her...

Why he picked the same spot, she didn't know. She kind of assumed it was fate. But one thing was certain...they knew that they were going to be there for a while.

She looked at Danny. He had a smile on his face, his "thank you," because she had let him share her hiding spot.

She didn't sense it coming, but now there was this peculiar feeling coming over her...

...that feeling of acceptance...

The next thing that came out of her mouth sealed it.

_"Want to - compare book reports?"_

Fenton, after hearing that, smiled back at her.

So there were some things that they had in common...over the next few days, their friendship became more and more closer, and they seemed to be patching up their differences in the past.

And the weird thing was, that during those few days, she felt another strange feeling...

...attraction?...

_She was starting to like him!_

She wasn't sure it existed, but soon, she found that she was confessing this to herself. And to the unexpected surprise of Danny's two close friends, Tucker Foley and Sam Manson, she told them too.

They responded by foisting Nathan upon her.

She might have been upset there, but it still didn't change her thoughts about Danny.

Needing someone who was supportive of her was something she always wanted, rather than a blind attempt in the past where she had to impress others by flashing around material wealth.

This friendship started with one simple question about a book report...

Danny was the first one to recognize her for who she really was, and not for judging by outside appearance, ability, or materialism. He saw her as the Valerie Gray underneath all those masks she had to wear in order to get friends in the first place. She was glad he existed.

OK, so that was ONE positive aspect that was brought upon her when her life was changed. She had a new-found ability to see people from the inside instead of outside appearance.

But still, that couldn't change about what happened to the rest of her...

She still held that grudge...to HIM...that ghost kid...

That truce was a farce. She only trusted him during that crisis, not for the rest of the time...she had planned to let it last only until she got out of the Ghost Zone, but he disappeared after that, and she, therefore couldn't do a sneak attack.

Besides, why _should_ she accept a truce? Look what he did to her!

He was responsible for destroying her house and for causing the termination of her dad's first job...

...All because of some ghost dog he explained later that he could not control...

_"Yeah, right,"_ she thought as she continued doing pull-ups.

He had caused her so much pain that a lot of her own time was spent on capturing or fighting ghosts. Her time was devoted to them.

She could take her frustration out on other ghosts that existed in Amity Park, such as that annoying blue one that incessantly mouthed out "Beware!", but she was waiting...watching...hoping to get that ghost kid at just the right time.

And it seemed like that time could be sometime soon.

Vlad Plasmius, her employer, had just given her some new equipment. New guns and weapons were now at her disposal, and her flying machine was now faster than ever. As she smiled about her new choice of weaponry, she was frowning on the inside upon the last thing that was done to her.

Keeping her ghost-fighting life a secret was something she was willing to take with her to the grave.

It didn't last long, however. Her cover was blown, mere months in her career, during the Pariah Dark crisis.

The Fenton suit was ready to be used to destroy the evil that surrounded the town. That ghost kid was there, as usual, in the superhero mode, trying to fight off the ghosts...

Once again, she didn't know whether she could trust him, but she had to help in the fight to save the town from going under control of the evil ghost king.

She assumed the truce was still in effect, at least in _his_ head...

So when everyone was knocked out from the hand-slapping fest about who should enter the Fenton suit, she felt it was her duty to perform the half of her job to protect the town. She would enter the suit, and with her power and experience, she would save everyone.

Then HE came along. They had an argument about who would enter the suit. Each wanted to be the hero to save Amity Park, and neither was willing to back down.

It was about this time her father came into the room...

_"You're not the boss of me!" _she remembered saying.

_"No,"_ he said. He then looked at her father. She would never forget what happened next...

Caught off guard by her father's appearance, she looked at him as well. That gave that ghost kid the perfect opportunity...she had let her guard down...

He ripped off her mask...then he said, _"But HE is!"_, pointing out the other person in the room.

Exposed...as a ghost hunter...in front of her father!

Whether or not he had reneged on his part of the deal during that time with Skulker, one thing was absolutely certain.

That truce was history, evil ghost king or not. She wanted to strangle him.

_"You're dead, ghost kid!"_ she had said.

And if her father wasn't there to stop her, she most likely would killed him...

That stunt got her into a lot of trouble...her father was now keeping a constant watch over her ghost hunting, and she was grounded for months...

Now that her father was involved in her personal career, apart from her other career at the Nasty Burger, she could no longer find any sort of trust in that ghost kid...

His fate on her list was sealed as her number one enemy.

She wanted to know everything there was about him so she could use it against him. There were pictures of him around her room. Ectoplasmic samples in various jars were also stored, along with any vital information that she had about this ghost kid, such as close friend he had, if _any..._

Now tired of her pull-up work, she was done for the night. Before she turned the lights off, she stared into his face on a picture tacked upon her wall, the tack piercing through his forehead...

His face seemed to be taunting her, almost as if he was speaking through the picture, "You want me? Come and get me!"

_"Someday, Danny Phantom,"_ she thought. _"I don't care whether it's me or anyone else that does it, but you ruined my life, and I'll make sure that yours is also ruined!"_

That insignia, the silver D on his chest, was the last thing she saw before she turned out the light.

If only she knew the truths...

...the truth that the ghost kid she hated was really Danny Fenton, her best friend. It was due to an accident that occurred in his parents' lab...

...and there was another truth...that he was currently fighting a battle with a ghost, who had the same grudge to ruin his life...

...and Danny Phantom was losing that fight, terribly...

_A/N: Is this all right? Send me some reviews, please._


	2. A Figure From the Shadows

_A/N: Thank you for reviewing, people! If it continues on like this after this chapter, I'll start thanking by name! I'll need many different reviewers, however...I promise you I'll try to make this interesting as possible...I'll try not to let you down..._

_And another thing...unless I state something at the end of the chapter, I'll try to update every three to four days..._

_There I go again...talking too much! Second chapter!_

_**Chapter 2 - A Figure from the Shadows**_

It had been only ten minutes, but it had already felt as if it was ten _hours._

He screamed as the power of the ectoplasmic shot lanced into his already bruised ribs.

"YAAHHH!" said Danny, careening through the air. As he felt himself getting knocked backwards, time seemed to be slowing down.

And it became normal again as his back slammed into a wall behind him.

Trying to ignore the pain, he flew towards his opponent and tried to fire an ectoplasmic blast at the target, but his opponent was long gone before he could even shoot the ray out of his hand.

Instead, his opponent flew behind him and fired a series of rays from gloved fingertips.

Taking shot after shot to the chest, he could barely make any sort of move without getting pounded with another ectoplasmic blast radiating out of nowhere.

And each one hurt more than the last...it seemed that the blasts were hitting the most vulnerable points of his body...

Which meant he couldn't concentrate hard enough on going intangible...

He was plummeting towards the ground for seemed like the thousandth time during that fight. His badly-scarred face seemed to tell the whole story.

Danny Phantom was taking one hell of a beating...

As he clutched his chest, screaming in pain, he wondered how he even got into this mess. He assumed it had to have started with that bus incident...this was the ghost who started this whole thing...the one who made it careen out of control...

And it was the same one that was currently shutting him in a world of misery.

This opponent was clearly more talented than any other person or thing he had ever fought. This person was faster, quicker, and to Danny's ultimate dismay, merciless when it came to fighting. Danny could barely take any time to counter any moves before he was shot down with another attack.

It seemed that it was always one step ahead of him. Whenever Danny attempted to fight back, the figure was able to counter it with an attack of its own.

But the worst part was, since the opponent was so fast, there was one feature Danny did not know about...

...who it was.

Because his opponent was moving so quickly, he didn't know who or what it was. Thinking it was Skulker was completely beyond belief because the character was very slim...and thinking it was Desiree was also an unlikely idea.

And the Box Ghost was just a shot out of left field.

But he knew it was a ghost...his sense kept going off...

Whoever it was, he didn't care anymore. He was only concerned with taking the person (or ghost) down. He had to win...

The character spoke a few times, but the voice was extremely muffled through the clothing or whatever was on its body. It looked like it was wearing shining strips of black cloth.

But enough about what the character looked like. He was thinking about why this fight started, and it seemed that the theory of the bus was his only option.

Leaping from the ground and taking off into flight, Danny duplicated himself three times. Each Danny shot off a ghost ray.

The figure leapt out of the way of the first three rays, but the fourth hit the figure's head. It started spinning towards the ground.

Merging back with his duplicates, Danny seized his chance. Reaching his top speed of 112 miles per hour, he tackled the spirit while it was falling through the cold, late-November air.

The black figure flew another twenty feet before it smashed into the pavement below, not moving.

His heart was racing...perhaps he had just won the battle...

Danny flew down and attempted to suck the spirit into the Fenton thermos.

But that fall was a fluke...the spirit suddenly stirred and quicly flew out of the way of the blue light. It then blasted the thermos out of Danny's hand.

His hands bleeding, Danny dropped the ghost catcher and tried to hold back the addition to his woes, in the form of slowly unbearable pain taking over his whole body.

**_"YOU THINK YOU CAN DEFEAT ME? JUST LIKE THAT?" _**boomed the shadowy voice.

Unfortunately for Danny, the answer was currently yes.

The spirit flew overhead and knocked Danny to the ground.

As Danny spun into the ground headfirst, he watched as the spinning world was forcing him towards the metal manhole cover in the street. He knew that this was going to hurt...

Time slowed down again as he literally kissed the cold, hard metal...

The resulting crash gave him a nasty gash on the forehead, and several more scrapes to his face.

It took a lot of will power to stand up once again. He had been sent towards the ground many times already.

He wondered about his own condition. Did he dare look at himself?

He glanced down at himself, and he almost wanted to vomit. He was a bleeding, exhausted wreck. His costume had actually changed color from black to a dark maroon. There were countless scrapes and tears from being thrown into various objects all the time, and his insignia had actually turned color from silver to a glistening ruby.

Asking if he was hurt was seriously beyond an understatement.

He suddenly saw the figure heading towards him in a dead-on tackle. He leapt out of the way just in time and fired a series of blasts after it.

They all missed, as the figure spun around him in a circle.

Danny became dizzy as he stopped to regain his currently spinning, out-of-focus, sight.

When he regained consciousness, his eyes, slowly blurring from exhaustion, futilely attempted a search for his opponent...

He was hit in the back from a tackle. As he fell forward, his hands hit the cold asphalt, hard.

Struggling to get back up, he was met with another ectoplasmic blast that hit him dead-on in the face...

Danny was flown backwards in a dark alley, his back hitting a dumpster.

All the pain Danny had been trying to suppress suddenly gave way through Danny's mouth in a bloodcurdling scream. He could act as if his arm wasn't bleeding profusely, his face wasn't all cut-up, and his fingertips were bruised and swelling, but he couldn't suppress this.

His shoulder was broken.

Clutching his throbbing shoulder, he knew that he could no longer get up again.

He had failed.

Two blue rings appeared around his waist. He had transformed back into Danny Fenton.

A weak and vulnerable Danny Fenton...

His opponent, who was flying through the air, landed on the ground lightly, some twenty feet away from him.

Though Danny was looking at the figure with tired eyes, those same eyes were green with fury. Whoever this ghost, or _thing_, was, he loathed it to the ends of the earth.

The black figure chuckled. **_"Heh...you've got guts...you really did put up one hell of a fight...and you call yourself the hero of this town!" _**The figure laughed.

Danny's eyebrow involuntarily twitched. He'd heard of the term about putting salt in the wound, but that laughter and comment felt as if someone had dumped a truckload on top of him.

_"You..." _Danny managed to breathe out.

_**"What? You've got something to say to me?"**_

It seemed to take the rest of Danny's strength to speak out his words. _ "You...will...pay..."_

**_"I will PAY?"_ **asked the figure. **_"I beg to differ! You are the one who should pay for the things you did to me!"_**

Danny, in his exhausted and throbbing stupor, was a little confused. "But...who...who are you? I don't...even know who you are!"

**_"You know who I am..." _**said the figure. **_"I'll prove it to you! You are responsible for my death!"_**

The cloaked figure stepped into a streetlight. There was a large black hood and veil covering the face...with two evil, glowing eyes staring back at him.

The figure lifted its arm and slowly unmasked itself...when the black mask slipped off, Danny squinted in vain to see the ghost's features.

His heart literally stopped beating from shock...

He saw the telltale eyes...the ribbon...

...and the most defining feature...the long hair that trailed down to the waist...

But that hair was supposed to be red-colored...it was currently shining green...

It was...Jazz.

Danny backed away in on the ground in horror, clutching his mangled shoulder.

_"No..." _he said weakly. _"No...it can't be...not you..."_

Jazz!

How!

It made no sense...no sense at all...

Questions...pouring into his head...he attempted to come up with answers, but they seemed to pass out of his head as quickly as he thought of them...there were simply too many...

And he had no answers...

Danny choked out more words. _"But...you can't be! You can't! It's not possible!"_

His sister spoke. It was a far different voice that was well beyond the once, cheery voice he was used to.

_**"You did this to me! And you will pay!"**_

"_Pay!"_ said Danny, somehow finding the strength to scream. _"What happened to you!"_

He was in desperate need of an answer...but she never gave him one.

"JAZZ!" he said, trying to get a response from her.

She didn't say a word. But she did start moving...

Danny's panicking eyes watched as she raised her hands. Out of the sky came green-colored lightning that condensed into a swirling, brightly, glowing sphere of ectoplasmic light.

Danny felt his back hit a wall. Looking behind him, he saw he was cornered by walls on three sides. The only way out was through his ghostly sister.

He tried, in vain, to go ghost, but it was to no avail. He was trapped.

There was only one way out of this...

"LISTEN TO ME, JAZZ!" he yelled. "PLEASE! I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED, HOW IT HAPPENED, OR WHY IT HAPPENED! BUT PLEASE! YOU DON'T WANT TO DO THIS! PLEASE LISTEN!"

**_"I'm through with listening!"_** said his ghostly sister. **_"A LONG TIME AGO!"_**

The sphere of light was now glowing so bright that Danny could no longer see his sister, but only an outline of the same black figure he was fighting before. He watched as the black figure launched the sphere directly at him.

The ball of light reflected in his eyes, as it got bigger and bigger, its menacing warmth actually feeling like it was trying to burn into his skin like a mini-sun thrown directly at him...

"NOOOOOOO!" he yelled, trying to shield the brilliancy with his arms.

A force jerked him back violently...it was as if he went through the wall behind him, but he never felt it...

In fact, it was as if he was no longer in his body...he was dropping, spinning wildly in a series of light and shadow...

..._through a tunnel!_

Danny was being transported through a tunnel of strangely dark light...the light of the real world seemed to be disappearing as he entered a makeshift breach glowing from the shining shadows. It seemed to be a world where everything was reversed in terms of shining and dullness.

Suddenly his body stopped...he was gently turning over and over...

He was floating in the air...

As he looked around...his surroundings became clearer...more green light...billowing dark clouds...a endless cold freezing his body all over and chilling his spine.

It was an endless misery that delved deep into his mind...he didn't want to be here...he couldn't be here...he had to get back...back to reality...

A familiar castle in the distance confirmed his greatest fears.

Danny was in the Ghost Zone...

Before he could do anything else, a black hand appeared in front of his face...then more black hands...he was being pulled further into its awesome depths...

"NO MORE!" he cried. "NO!"

The transport tunnel disappeared...the real world's light was gone...he was locked away in here...he couldn't go back...

And his pleading fell on deaf ears, or whatever they were...he was falling further in the Ghost Zone...he was about to become one of them...another wandering spirit...

Danny reached out with his hand, desperately trying to grab onto anything...but nothing was within reach...

He was falling and screaming at the same time, his eyes clenched shut...

...falling...

...screaming, struggling...

...falling...

...onto...

...something...soft?

It was a bed.

Danny's eyes shot open, screaming...drenched in a cold sweat...he could see himself reflected in his bedroom mirror, his body covered by twisted ropes, which were at one time smooth, white sheets.

As his heart was pounding at a million times per minute, he checked himself for injuries...he felt his face, legs, chest...everything seemed to be perfectly fine...

He was in his PJ's...not in a torn-up, bleeding, ghost suit...

He _went_ ghost...the two blue rings appeared and went in the north and south directions.

His costume was in perfect condition, and the D was shining brighter than ever...no scratches, tears, or different shades of color mixing with it.

Changing back into human form, Danny jumped out of his bed, ran up to the mirror and looked at his eyes. The blue eyes were blood shot red, the black, unkempt hair was even more unkempt, and his skin was extremely pale...paler than white...

Other than that, he seemed fine...

The fourteen-year old then looked down at the floor, his hands resting on the table.

He could actually feel a tear falling down from his eye. It sparkled in the moonlight like a fragile diamond as it fell towards the ground with a faint splash.

That was the first time he had cried in about a few months...

He looked at the clock. It was 3:00 in the morning.

Another memory...the bus he had saved hours ago...

...it wasn't the work of any ghost...black ice on the road caused it to loose control and careen towards a cliff...he was in the right place at the right time...no one could blame him for the accident...

He was there, everyone saw him save all the people on the bus, and the news made him look like a hero.

His ratings were sure to rise from that 64 approval...

And it seemed that no one else was calling him the name Inviso-Bill...

As he slowly found the answers to all the questions that were building up in his head...he realized that everything was as it was supposed to be.

He started breathing heavily...sighing...his heart was slowly reaching regular beating rate again.

He wasn't dying in the Ghost Zone...he was in his own house, in his own room...

...alive.

That was definitely one of the worst nightmares he had in a while...one that was making him cry...

...and his sister was somehow part of it...

The tears continued falling from his face, forming small rivers down his cheeks.

Jazz...

...why did it have to be Jazz? What did he ever to do her?

...and the haunting question..._Why was she dead?_

There was no answer for that, however, when he heard his door open with that familiar creak.

Jumping about three feet backwards into the air, his back landed on the edge of his bed. Obviously out of balance, he fell onto the floor.

White light poured into his bedroom from the hall light outside, greatly winning over the dark world that was currently Danny's room.

Danny quickly put his hands to his cheeks and started wiping away the rivers of tears with his clothes. Whoever the visitor was, he didn't want him or her to see him like this.

Picking himself up, and squinting into the blinding light, he tried to see who it was that opened the door.

"Danny! I heard you screaming! Are you OK?"

And as his eyes adjusted to the sudden change in light, his heart started racing once again...

It was Jazz out there in the hallway...

...the same Jazz from his dream...

...or was it?

His ghost sense wasn't going off, so she was alive...not some raging maniac bent on his destruction...

"Can I come in?" she asked.

Danny's mouth struggled to make a word. It was merely a question of four, short words, but it was one of the hardest questions he had an answer for.

The seconds ticked by...the clock's monotonous ticking was the only thing heard in the room...

His thoughts were the only other things he could hear.

_"I can let her inside," _he thought. _"She did come through all this trouble to see how her younger brother was..."_

_No! You just had a dream about her trying to kill you!_

_"It was only a dream!"_

_Not from what I saw! You were CRYING!_

"Shut up!" said Danny, out loud.

"What?" asked Jazz. "I didn't say anything to you!"

Danny suddenly looked at his sister in horror, his hands coming up to his head.

"Oh, my...I'm sorry...my thoughts...I..."

It was too hard to explain. He'd better just stop right there.

Jazz seemed to understand the whole thing. "...I see, Danny. I know how dreams can be. I have nightmares, too. I know they seem real, but just remember, they're only dreams. Dreams can't hurt you, no matter what happens."

Danny knew she was right...although his butt was literally kicked in his dream, when he woke up he was perfectly fine.

Jazz spoke again. "So...can I please come in? You don't have to, but seriously, make a choice...it's freezing out here!"

Danny looked at her. She was indeed freezing in the hallway...standing out there in her robe, looking miserable out there in the hall, far from her warm bed. She was tightly covering herself with the robe, trying to warm herself as much as possible.

There was only one thing he could do...

Despite all the protests of the other half of his screaming mind, Danny's left hand extended, turned over, and beckoned her in.

_To be continued...chapter 3 coming soon...reviews, please!_


	3. Someone Who Cares

_A/N: I'm glad to see that some of you are already connecting with the characters. Thank you, all of you, for reviewing!_

_I see that some of you have questions for me...for your rewards, I will answer a few..._

_No, Jazz is not dead...it was a nightmare...he woke up in his room, remember? And his ghost sense didn't go off when he saw his sister in the hallway. Got it?_

_As for my answer to the death of a certain character, I will only ask that you continue reading to find out. (Evil laugh...)_

_This chapter is kind of a break from the evil, dark side that I've been currently building into...I know this is frustrating for all you action fans out there, but I assure you...it's necessary for the plot._

_I need to stop talking...seriously...Chapter 3, coming at you!_

_**Chapter 3 - Someone Who Cares**_

Jazz walked into Danny's room, glad that he was allowing her entrance. As she entered, she noticed the roping sheets and the piles and piles of papers strewn throughout the room.

That must have been some nightmare he had. Probably worse than she thought.

She kept it in mind as Danny gestured her over to his side. She sat down next to him on his bed, while he buried his face in his hands, trying to hide his falling tears.

He should have known better. As she looked closely at him, she noticed an escapee tear trailing off the corner of his eye. It _was_ worse than she had thought.

The seconds ticked by once again, unbroken. Neither was making a move or any opening statement.

The night wind rattled against the windowpane of Danny's room, and the moonlight gave the now darkened room a very faint illumination.

Jazz finally broke the silence. "Danny, I'm worried about you."

"Huh?" he asked, his hands still covering his eyes. "What are you talking about?"

Jazz reached over and yanked his hands away. "I'm talking about this!" She acknowledged the small salty puddles in his hands.

Danny knew that he was caught red-handed. "All right, all right...but seriously...did you have to do that?"

"I'm just trying to make a point here!" she said, her voice suddenly changing. "Danny, I know that you think I'm pushy...and that I have been even more overprotective ever since I found about your secret..."

_"Amen,"_ Danny thought.

"...but I've noticed a change in you over the past week. A BIGGER change. On Thanksgivings, you're usually gorging on turkey until your stomach bursts. But this year, I saw that you could barely finish a drumstick! You're shutting yourself in your room all the time, and you're not letting anybody talking to you! Even Sam and Tucker are asking me to talk to you! Furthermore, and this comes as a BIG surprise to me...you're actually starting to do your homework on time! This isn't you!"

_What was wrong with doing his homework? More of an improvement, really!_ He wanted greatly to counter the criticism...

"Danny, I remember our last encounter with Spectra, but she's not here...so I'm sure you're not suffering from her power...this is the actual thing...you're depressed about something..."

Slow stress started building in his mind, believing that letting her in was a bad idea...

"Unlike Mom and Dad, who are always blabbering on about ghosts, I've actually been noticing this whole thing myself..."

The stress started pouring out...Danny couldn't take it anymore.

"ALL RIGHT!" he softly shouted, standing up from his seat and looking out the fogged window. "ALL RIGHT! I know I haven't been acting myself. I...I'm just under...a lot of pressure..."

"Pressure?" asked Jazz. "Pressure from what?"

"There's more things I've got to do..." he said. "My ghost hunting life is starting to get more, well, involved..."

"How so?" she asked, standing up. "You can tell me."

Danny turned in her direction. "I...I..." He clutched his head as he tried to say the words.

"No...I...I...can't say it..."

Jazz walked up to him and put her hand on his shoulder. It was a warm benefactor to combat the surrounding cold. As he looked up at her, she was smiling at him.

"Remember what else I told you?" she said gently. "Mom and Dad don't have to know everything. That's why I don't say anything about your secret. And that's because it's _yours. _If there's anyone you can talk to about a problem, and Mom and Dad are out of the picture...it can be me. Trust me, you can talk to me about _anything_."

Slowly, Danny felt himself return the smile. His other half of his mind under stress from earlier seemed to melt away into its formation.

This wasn't the Jazz he saw in his dream...this was the caring, older sister that was always there for him...

And she was right, too...she _was _the same one who swore to never reveal his secret...

Danny, taking a deep breath, finally spoke. "All right, Jazz."

_"A breakthrough!"_ she thought excitedly. "OK, what's wrong, Danny?"

"I'd rather sit down first," he said.

Seating themselves comfortably in their earlier seats on the bed, Danny began talking. Eagerness began to swell in Jazz's mind.

"I...think...I'm starting to gain a new power..."

"A new power?" asked Jazz. "But that's _great_, Danny! It can help you more with your fights! How is that so stressful?"

Danny's head remained focused on the ground, however. "Because...it's not a ghost power...it's more of the power premonition, really..."

"A premonition?"

"...in my dreams." he stated, not moving.

"Doesn't that help you?" she asked. "You can be one step ahead in all your fights..."

"I already told you...it's not a ghost power! I'm starting to have dreams...and they don't look...well...happy...I've been having really strange dreams lately...and the one that I just woke from...it was a nightmare."

Jazz frowned. "Haven't we been over this already, Danny? I told you...dreams can't-"

"JAZZ!" said Danny, his voice rising again. "This isn't easy to explain!"

"What isn't?" she asked nonchalantly.

It wasn't the correct form of voice. Danny got up from his seat for the second time, in an even greater rage of fury. He wasn't sure whether or not to be angry at the statement, or Jazz herself.

"In my dream, the one I just _had_, you were in it!"

"I was in it? What was I doing? Trying to help you?"

"No!" he said. "You were _dead! You _were trying to _kill_ me!"

Jazz's expression changed from a frowning scorn to an astonished look of fear.

Her voice was just an inch above a whisper. "_Dead?_" she asked.

"Yes! Dead! Things were so much different...so...dark..."

The horrific memories of his dream came back to haunt him, as he remembered his own wounds...the bright green flash...the endless hands trying to force him into the inner recesses of the Ghost Zone...

The familiar pressure pushing down on him again, Danny gave into it...

...not being able to think of any other way to fight the pressure, he gave in.

He started to cry again...

Jazz looked at her shaken brother, with a shocked expression on her face. He had dreamt her dead...and she was trying to kill him...

And from the way he was curled up on the floor, she could sense that she might have succeeded...

Whatever problem she thought it was in the beginning, she never expected it to be of this magnitude.

Danny continued talking, through soft sobs. "And...you sent me into the Ghost Zone...I couldn't find a way _out_..."

She closed her eyes and felt her head rock down towards the floor. She tried to come up with some way that she could help her brother.

But it didn't look like there was a thing she could talk about that could be used from her books.

She would just have to use her own sense of knowledge. The knowledge of knowing what she knew about her brother...what _he_ wanted to hear.

Jazz knelt down beside him, on the cold floor. She extended her hand out at him, gently grasping his left arm.

"Danny, look at me."

His head slowly rose, exposing the face he was afraid to show from earlier. But before he knew it, she hugged him, and looked directly at him, though his face remained staring at the ground.

"I'm your sister," she said, "...whether or not any your dreams seem to be real. I am always here to protect you, _nothing_ will change that. No matter what happens, you hear me? _No matter what happens_. As long as you do your share of protecting the city, I will always be here helping you...living, or dead."

"But...what if -"

"What if _nothing,_ Danny! Even if I _do_ become a ghost, I swear it will not be to harm you in any way. I'll continue watching you, but as a guardian...not as someone bent on rage..."

Danny looked back at his sister. He wiped away more tears as she continued.

"It's called a bond, Danny...something that nothing can break...I promise this to you...no harm will come that directly involves me...I swear...though a dream seems real, just remember, it's only a dream...just a dream..."

As Danny wiped away more tears, a faint smile appeared across his face. Jazz could sense there was a bit of courage shining somewhere in that smile.

Meanwhile, the strong wind rattling the windowpane suddenly subsided, leaving the room in silence. The moonlight seemed give a greater illumination to the room as Danny finally took in the words from his sister, and returned the hug from before.

"Thank you, Jazz," he said, weakly.

"I'm your sister," said Jazz. "I'm supposed to do that."

"Heh..." he said, breaking away from the hug. "It's nice to know I'll have at least one normal family member around the holidays..."

The holidays...Jazz felt it was as good a time as any to ask. "So...Danny..." she said, with a slight smile on her face. "December's coming up. Did you get anything for me yet?"

Danny suddenly stopped, and looked around in panic. He had forgotten all about it...he remembered the stores were already crowded when it was the start of December...Christmas was taken quite seriously around these parts...

And even more serious at home...he didn't have a present for anyone yet...he'd better start buying...

"Danny..." Jazz said, her voice playfully changing into a mock firming voice. "You _did_ get me something..._right?_ I already have _yours..._"

Smiling, but at the same time, desperately trying to find a way out, Danny looked around the room, for any excuse.

Finally spotting the clock, it showed the the time of 4:00. Knowing that being late was one of Jazz's pet peeves, he tried to use that.

"Oh, man, look at the time!" he said. "We have school in five hours!"

"Huh?" she asked, looking at the clock. "Oh, geez! You're right!"

She stood up and went out the room in a hurry. Danny internally breathed a sigh of relief. Though she had promised not to hurt him, he knew he was dead meat if he had forgotten all about a present, whether or not he had ghost powers...

So he was safe, for now. His perspiration quickly died away.

But before she left, she turned and said, "Danny, remember what I said."

"I will. Oh, and Jazz?"

"What?"

"Thanks..."

Smiling again, she said, "No problem."

She left his room, turning in the hallway towards her own room.

Danny crossed over to his bed and started smoothing out the sheets. As he slept for the rest of the night, he hoped he didn't have any more of those dreams...

He had a vision where he could see Tucker playfully punching him because he had forgotten all about Christmas, but other than that, nothing nerve-wracking...

000000000000000000000000000000

_8:30 AM, the same morning..._

"Danny!" called Maddie Fenton from the kitchen. "Breakfast!"

Quickly getting out of the shower and dressing in his usual attire, Danny slid downstairs via the bannister.

A steaming pile of pancakes stood before him at the table. Taking a heaping helping, he poured syrup all over the stack and made quick work of it.

"Well," said Jack. "Someone's hungry today. It's a good thing I'm not eating like you."

Danny looked at his father's plate. It was piled with a stack about three times as high as his own.

_"I wouldn't be too sure of that,"_ thought Danny, attempting to suppress a laugh. Looking across the table, he could see his sister and mother also trying to hold back a giggle.

"Well, it's good to see that everyone's getting into the Christmas spirit," said Jack, completely oblivious to the situation. "So, Danny, any presents you've bought yet, perhaps...(he winked)...for your old man?"

Danny nearly choked while downing a glass of orange juice.

"I...uh...I..."

The doorbell rang, followed by a big knock at the door.

He felt a sigh of relief...he was saved...again!

"I'll get it!" he said, running as fast as he could to the door, leaving his father on the ropes.

Opening the door, he saw the familiar faces of his best friends, Tucker Foley and Sam Manson.

It looked like they were getting into the season, too. Instead of the usual long-sleeved yellow shirt, Tucker was wearing a red shirt that had a picture of a decorated Christmas tree on it. And even Sam...instead of the usual black band she wore around her neck, it was a necklace that had a little Christmas tree charm on it, complete with matching earrings.

"Well," said Tucker, pointing to his outfit, "what do you think?"

"What do I think?" asked Danny. "I think that you both are taking this a little far...it's still only November!"

And with his family in the same fashion, he felt surrounded.

"You can't be too early, when the holidays are involved," said Sam. "Besides, its the thirtieth of November...meaning that there's only one more day!"

"Well," repeated Tucker. "What do you think about my outfit?"

"It looks nice," said Danny quickly. Turning to Sam, he said, "And that new stuff you've got on...you look nice, as well."

Sam blushed. "Thanks..." she said.

Danny also felt himself blush faintly...it seemed that he and Sam were getting a lot closer lately...

_"Augh..." _he thought, snapping out of it. _"I can't think of that now!"_

Picking up his backpack at the door, Danny yelled back, "Goodbye! See you later!"

His parents and sister waved back at him as he closed the door. Running down the steps, he caught up with his friends, who were already walking down the street towards Casper High.

It was pretty much a normal Friday morning, except for the fact that people were already putting up Christmas lights. Though he just had that talk with his sister, for some reason, he didn't feel very much in the Christmas spirit...

"So how are you feeling today, Danny?" asked Tucker.

"I feel a lot better from yesterday," said Danny. "But seriously, guys...what the heck is the big idea, telling Jazz all about it?"

"You wouldn't talk to us!" said Sam. "We didn't have any other choice!"

"Well, I guess you're right," said Danny. "Especially about this dream I had last night."

"A dream?" asked Sam. "What dream?"

Taking a deep breath, Danny told them about his nightmarish visions from before.

"Wow, Danny," said Tucker as he finished. He had a serious expression of concern on his face. "I didn't know they were that bad...and Jazz was dead?"

"And from the Ghost Zone, trying to get you?" asked Sam, who had a shocked expression on her face. "Geez, and I thought I had dark dreams..."

"Yes," said Danny, with his head down. "But guys, seriously...I don't want to talk about it anymore...it was just too painful, both in my head and in my dream..."

"Yeah, I know how you feel, man," said Tucker, giving him a pat on the shoulder. "I know how it is, feeling as if someone could kill me at any moment of the day..."

"TUCKER!" said Sam. "Don't say that!"

"Oh, sorry..." Tucker said, backing off.

"Look, Danny," said Sam. "I know things have been getting a little dark around here, but seriously, I can assure that nothing bad can happen to you right now, all right? These are only dreams, not premonitions, or whatever you think they are."

It was basically the same words that Jazz had said to him before, but still, it was nice to have someone that cared about him. Danny smiled at her.

"It's Christmas!" said Tucker, coming back. "You should feel happy about all of this! Happy that we're about to get a vacation!"

"Tucker," said Danny. "For the last time, it's still only November."

"Oh yeah, forgot about that."

They laughed about it as they reached the school with about ten minutes to spare.

As the trio reached the steps, they could hear running footsteps behind them.

"...Danny..." said a faint voice, out of breath. "Wait up!"

All three teens turned around. In the distance, they could see someone that looked like she were running to catch up with them for a while.

"Hello, Valerie," said Danny, waving at her.

"Morning, Fenton," said Valerie, smiling back at him. Turning to Sam and Tucker, she waved and simply said "Hi."

They responded with the same type of simple greeting.

"Nice Christmas gear," she said, hopefully, trying to get them to respond with something else.

"Thanks," both of them said quickly.

"So what's up?" she asked, acknowledging only Danny. "Anything new?"

"Nah, nothing special. Last night, though, I was finally able to get that algebra problem that everyone was having trouble with." he said. He looked back at Sam and Tucker, seeing if they had a response.

They only glared back at her.

In fact, they made it clear that they didn't want her anywhere near Danny.

He knew the reason...and it was other than the fact that they knew that she was a ghost hunter set out to get him. In the past, when she was rich, Valerie was mean to them. But now that she was friendly with only him, they felt as if she was barging in on them.

And just because she was poor didn't give them any excuse to cut her any slack.

If only he could make them see that underneath all that ghost hunting...she wasn't that bad a person...

"They're still against me, huh?" whispered Valerie to Danny.

"Just give it time," he whispered back, glaring back at his best friends.

His voice raising in volume, he said, "C'mon guys, we're all going to be late!"

All four teens walked into Casper High together, just as the five-minute bell rang.

They were walking through the hallway. That familiar sense of being surrounded by early celebrators came again to smack Danny in the face. Fake holly, garlands, and red ribbon decorated the whole hallway.

And the more frightening decoration to Danny...

Mistletoe...hanging over _every_ single door frame...

His algebra class was only a few steps away...and as he got closer, he could see Paulina stationed directly underneath the door frame.

There was no surprise...nearly every single guy tried stopping underneath the door frame next to her...and she pushed them all out of the way.

"Get lost, loser!" said Paulina, pushing away another hopeful candidate. Looking up the hallway, she could see Danny walking up with his friends.

Her voice suudenly changed. "Oh, yoo-hoo, Danny!" she said. "Come here!"

Danny's heart stopped. Did she actually want him...under there?

Leaving behind a shocked Sam, Tucker, and Valerie, Danny ran up as fast as he could.

But before he could get under the door frame, she held him back.

"I'm not under here for _you..._I just wanted to know if the ghost boy was going to be here today, since he seems to show up wherever you do!"

Danny's shoulders dropped, realizing the truth.

And behind him, Sam and Valerie were acting like they were trying to suppress themselves from throwing up. Danny wanted to laugh, but realized that Paulina was still in front of him.

"I don't know, Paulina," he said. "He only shows up whenever trouble is here."

_"Yeah,"_ said Valerie in her head. _"Half the time, he's part of it!"_

"Well," said Paulina. "If you see him, will you tell him that I'm here (her eyes narrowed) _waiting_ for him?"

"We'll see..." said Danny, sighing.

"Good," Paulina said. "I'll be looking forward to it." She left the doorway and took her seat in class.

While she walked away, Danny sighed after her, still miffed that she liked his Phantom half over his Fenton half...

"_Danny Phantom_," said Valerie, turning to Tucker. "That dumb ghost kid, she _likes _him?"

"Y-yes..." said Tucker, trying to keep Danny's secret under wraps. "I-I don't know why, either..."

As Valerie talked with Tucker, Sam took the chance to silently voice her opinions out of earshot.

"Seriously, Danny, what do you see in her?"

"Paulina? Well, other than the fact of her 'flawless skin,' she..."

"I'm not talking about Paulina!" Her head jerked in the direction of Valerie. "I'm talking about _her_!"

"Val? She's not that bad once you get to know her..."

"She's also one of your enemies! I can't believe you're still letting her this close!"

"And _I_ still can't believe that you're not trying to get to know her!" he responded. "C'mon, Sam, you and Tucker just said it yourselves...it's the Christmas season coming soon, and if you two are going to act like a pair of Scrooges-"

"But Danny, I don't know about this..."

"Just _try..._c'mon...will you at least have _one_ conversation with her?"

"What if -"

"One conversation..." said Danny, looking straight at her.

Sam looked at him with all the resentment she had towards Valerie, but as she looked at her best friend, she felt helplessly outnumbered, although it was only one person. Defeated, Sam's head went down, her earrings dangling as she looked at her feet.

Sighing, she said, "...OK..._one_ conversation...I'll talk with her..."

Those words seemed to leave a bad taste in her mouth.

"Thank you, Sam," said Danny, smiling.

Sam tried to return the smile, but only sighed, as they walked into first period algebra. Tucker and Valerie, both with free periods, were left behind in the hallway.

"See you in an hour," they said, staring back at Danny and Sam. Then they continued talking about Danny's alter ego.

"Bye," said Sam, feeling trapped, as the bell rang for first period.

Sure, she made a promise to Danny. But for some reason, she felt as if she was going to horribly regret it in some way.

But she had four periods to think about it...who knew? Maybe it could work...

But then again...maybe it wouldn't.

_Sorry, people...have to end it there...please continue the reviews, though...Chapter 4 (and personal thank-yous) coming ASAP._


	4. The Center of Attention

_A/N: I promised, so here's my thanks to all of you..._

_Ginger Guardian Angel: Thank you for reviewing and liking the story. Your reviews are kind of funny to read...I'm glad to see something like that...thanks a bunch._

_Spongewolf: (Thanks for the cookies!) Thank you for reviewing, as well. I like how you connect with the characters. Quite inspiring, really..._

_CrazyCosmoFan: Short, but encouraging reviews, but still, thank you very much for reviewing._

_alboc: Thank you for liking the chapters...oh, and BTW, this chapter may answer half of your question...which one, you ask? You're about to find out._

_TayloWolf: Thank you for thinking it's awesome! Here's your next chapter._

_Ari-Griffin: If you were looking forward to more of the story, here you go...and thank you._

_KatrinaKaiba: Thanks for thinking I've got good character portrayal...I'll try my best to keep them all IC..._

_Now here's Chapter 4 for all you readers out there...I'm still a bit unhappy with its development, though, and I might think of revising it...but if you think it's all right, just tell me._

_**Chapter 4 - The Center of Attention**_

_RIIIINNNGG!_

After everyone took their seats, Mr. Lancer started taking roll call for the first period algebra students.

Rubbing the last remaining portion of sleep from his eyes, Danny took out his algebra assignment from last night and started looking over the problems.

For the most part, everything seemed to be fine...it seemed to be easy, and that was despite Lancer's boring lesson from yesterday, from which he fell asleep...

But as he watched the teacher take roll call, a thought passed through his head. It seemed that Mr. Lancer taught _every single_ class...he was there to help him for his English assignments...he was there for astrology...

Hell, the guy seemed to be the only teacher in the _whole school_!

He had him so many times during the day, that it felt like every school day was just another day with Lancer...his only classes without him were Special Education and Gym...

...And the handicap was that Lancer was pretty informed about Danny's work habits. Despite his father's chantings about Fentons being a family of intellectuals, he was pretty much a C-student.

And colleges didn't like C's.

Although it was weird for his sister for her to suddenly notice him doing homework, he felt it was a perfect time to turn over a new leaf and start working hard from now on, despite all his time fighting ghosts...

_"...Eh, who cares?"_ Danny thought, as Lancer continued calling out names. _"Might as well start with this subject."_

He was a little concerned, however, since he was getting a D+ right now...but there was plenty of room for make-up. The final was about two-and-a-half weeks away, and it was an easy chapter. Basically it was just time to start stepping on the gas.

Lancer's voice droned in his usual mechanical fashion as he continued roll call.

"_Baxter_, Dash!"

"Present!"

"_Betcher_, Michael!"

"Here!"

"_Castro_, Peter!"

"Present!"

_"Come on, come on," _thought Danny, _"let's get this over with!"_

"_Earhart_, Anne!"

"Here!"

"_Garrison, _Star!"

"Here!"

_"Hey, wait a minute,"_ Danny thought. _"Lancer just skipped over me!"_

Sam noticed this too and turned to look at Danny, concerned. Half the class seemed to notice this as well. But Lancer continued spewing out the names on the sheet, seeming to take absolutely no notice.

"What's going on?" asked Sam.

"I don't know," said Danny. "But something tells me that I'm not going to like this..."

"_Lee, _Kwan!"

"Here!"

"_Manson,_ Samantha!"

A cautious, yet able-bodied, "Present!" came from Sam's mouth.

_"Ortiz,_ Paulina!"

"Here!"

Now Danny was extremely confused. Before he could call out the next name, Danny walked up to Mr. Lancer. He didn't understand. He was in that class for _months!_ He wasn't failing, nor did he have any intention of dropping.

"Mr. Lancer," Danny said, before Lancer could yell out the next name, "what's going on?"

Lancer dropped the sheet in front of him and looked at the fourteen-year old standing there. "Nothing, Daniel, why?"

"Because you just skipped over my name! What happened?"

"I didn't skip over your name," said Lancer, his voice suddenly lightening up. "You're next on the list."

"I'm next?" asked Danny, looking at the roll sheet. "What the heck? It's impossible! My last name starts with..."

Suddenly his hand went slack from the sheet, as he repeated the same word.

"...with..._with_..."

Then he was cut off from words altogether. His heart started racing at a hundred miles per hour again...

_"No,"_ he thought, shaking his head. _"It's impossible...no..."_

Clear as day, on the roll sheet, Danny saw the next alphabetical name on the list, in bold, uppercase letters.

"PHANTOM, DANNY."

Danny backed away in horror. When was the roll sheet changed?

_And since when did Lancer know_?

_"No...this can't be happening..."_ he thought as he turned towards his seat. _"I wasn't that obvious, was I?"_

Danny answered himself. _Well, if you considered all of those absences you took to fight ghosts...he might have caught on. He is your ONLY teacher you know, and a smart one at that._

Lancer smiled. "This is _your_ name, right? I changed the roll sheet so things can be well-_updated_."

The words were out before he could stop himself. "Yes..." said Danny, turning away and walking towards his seat.

_"What are you DOING?"_ asked a voice in his head. _"You're going to let it go, just like that?"_

"All right!" said Lancer. "Now that that has been settled, who's next?"

_"Oh, shit!" _thought Danny. He usually cussed only in his head, but as it was something desperate, he came really close to saying it out loud...

Danny snapped out of his reverie and turned around. Lancer was just about to reveal his secret to the entire class!

"NO!" he tried screaming, but no words came out...it was as if someone had plugged his mouth with a scrunched-up cotton shirt...

"_Phantom, _Danny!" said Lancer loudly, with a huge grin on his face, looking directly at Danny. It seemed as if he had emphasized every syllable with gusto.

"Phantom?" chanted the whole class. Danny couldn't stop it...they were already talking about it amongst themselves...

Danny started sweating. He felt as if he was lifting off the ground...

_Wait a minute..._he _was_ lifting off the ground! Three _feet _above the ground!

And he was glowing?

Was he starting to lose control of his powers again? In the middle of class?

"Oh, my GOD!" said Paulina, pointing at Danny. "Look!"

Screams of terror and excitement flooded the room as they realized what was happening.

Every student ran up to him as he remained stationed in the air. He tried to go back down, but it seemed that he had no control over his floating...any doubt that any person in the class had was basically off in space by now.

Danny felt helpless as his eyes shifted from each student to the next, looking at all their reactions.

"Fenton was the ghost kid!" said one of the students. "I can't believe this!"

"Danny _Fenton_...Danny _Phantom..._" said Dash. "Duh, even _I_ should have seen that...but you're still a loser, Fenton!"

"The cool ghost kid...his alter ego was Fenton..." said Kwan, shaking his head.

"Oh, my God!" said Paulina. _"You're_ the ghost boy? I don't know what to say..."

Danny's eyes shifted to Mr. Lancer. Lancer never moved from his spot...he had a large smile on his smug face...

Lancer seemed to be enjoying himself immensely.

And Danny was _loathing_ him immensely...

"Can it, Paulina!" said Sam, the only one in the room who had known in advance. "And the rest of you!" she said, looking around at the others, shielding Danny from them as if they were about to attack him at any moment. "I don't know _how_ Lancer knew about this..."

"Who said Lancer knew about this?" said the teacher still standing there.

"What are you _talking _about?" said Sam. "You're Lancer!"

"No, I'm not..." said the teacher.

His voice was suddenly different...

_"That's weird,"_ thought Sam. _"That sounded just like..."_

The class watched as Lancer's eyes suddenly rolled backwards in his head...and then watch him pass out on the floor...

While suspended in the air, Danny felt his ghost sense go off...someone had been overshadowing Lancer the whole time...

He watched as a body reappeared out of thin air, having been invisible from before...it was a man with a cape...dressed in grey, red, and black...

_"Damn!" _thought Danny, perspiring profusely. _"No wonder...HE'S here!"_

Vlad Plasmius had stepped out of the shadows.

"AHH!" cried Paulina. "Another ghost!"

Plasmius laughed. "AH! Daniel...so glad to see you once again...I hope you haven't been getting into trouble recently?"

Danny tried going ghost, but for some reason, _couldn't_...he could only watch in suspense as his archnemesis continued speaking.

"I said I'd get my revenge sooner or later," said Plasmius. "And what better place to do this, than in the company of your own _schoolmates! _Enjoy the new power, Daniel? With a wave of my hand, it paralyzes all ghosts in the room...namely, yourself..."

Suddenly it came clear as to why he wasn't moving...

"But I haven't tried it out on _humans_ yet!" said Plasmius, eyeing the horrified class. "I wonder which of you will be first?"

"Run!" cried Dash to everyone else.

"_Run?_" asked Plasmius incredulously. "The fun's just _beginning_! And all of you will be the spectators!"

Waving his hand in front of his classmates, Plasmius found it simple, since none of them had powers to try and intercept the attack...

Then he summoned up a ghostly rope, similar to the one Danny's evil half had the ability to create, and bound Danny's classmates against the western wall.

From a series of ectoplasmic blasts that came from his fingertips, Plasmius sealed all their mouths shut with ectoplasmic goo...

"I know that they're unable to speak," said Plasmius, "but that's like a _just-in-case_ kind of thing, don't you think?"

Dany could only glare at him.

"Well," said Plasmius, admiring his work. "That's everyone, I think..."

"I wouldn't think so!" yelled a female voice.

"Huh?" asked Plasmius, looking around.

A flying chair connected with his face and sent him into the corner.

Danny tried to see who it was, but still had no ability to move while stationed there...

But when the person came in front to act as his final shield against Plasmius, he was greatly wishing that she didn't do that...

"You snake!" said Sam, somehow finding the bravery to shield Danny. "You'll pay for this!"

_"Sam!"_ Danny tried yelling, but still couldn't. _"Get out of here! Save yourself!"_

_"Au contraire,_ my goth friend," said Plasmius, recovering, and summoning up a ghost ray. "It is _you_ that will pay for that attack of yours!"

Before Sam could say anything in retortion, Plasmius blasted the ray in her direction.

The resulting blast catapulted her against the back wall, knocking her head against the sharp edge of the cabinet...

_"No! SAM!"_ cried Danny in his head.

Danny waited for some response, but got none...

_"Sam..."_ he thought, his heart filling with emotion. _"No...not you..."_

Those familiar tears of misery formed up in his eyes as he realized that his only protector, and _friend_, in the room, was gone...

His head fell down towards his chest as he grieved in thoughts.

_"Why didn't you run, Sam? You could have saved yourself...you should not have tried to protect me..."_

Danny knew it was only him and Plasmius now, and there was nothing holding him back...

Plasmius spoke. "Well, Daniel, you knew I'd come back sooner or later once I found out the best way to get around your defenses..."

_"By bringing pain to my defenseless friends?"_ thought Danny.

"...but then I got to thinking. You know, I _could _destroy you right now, but that wouldn't be a lot of fun, with you, helplessly floating there, and me, flying freely..."

Danny's eyes shifted in his direction...perhaps he'd let him fight, after all?

The given answer, however, was in the typical fashion that Plasmius usually waited for...and it was dripping with sarcasm.

"...so I've realized that I can't do it. So I've brought in a substitute for this while I sit back and watch your demise. I'm sure you'll be quite satisfied with the person I chose...as you're best _friends_ with her..."

_"Oh, no..."_ thought Danny. _"You're not talking about..."_

"Oh, pawn, I mean, uhh...assistant? Will you come in here?"

After that, Plasmius abruptly changed back into his human form.

Danny could hear the creaking of the door behind him, and saw the visitor...

And when he saw who it was, he realized the reason why Plasmius changed back into his human form...

It didn't seem to matter that his other classmates were still tied up and gagged...Plasmius would stop at nothing in order to get his revenge...

"I heard the commotion inside," said the visitor. "And I saw the _whole thing...and I still can't believe it..."_

Though it was impossible, Danny could feel his heart racing even faster, as he was staring at the person who he wished could never find out.

But here that person was...and here _he_ was, floating helplessly in the air...an easy target...

Valerie, in her ghost hunting outfit, was in the room.

"Danny Fenton!" she said. "I should have known ALL along that it was you! You were just _pretending_ to be my friend, weren't you? Just another one of your plans to let my guard down and for you to attack me from behind! I _should have known_ you were planning something like this, you _liar!_"

Danny tried to scream out that none of this was his fault, but he couldn't say a word...

"Do it now, Valerie!" said Plasmius. "Destroy the traitor who tried to befriend you!"

"Yes, sir!" said Valerie, acknowledging her employer, and then pointing her bazooka directly at Danny. "Good-bye, and good riddance, damn Phantom!" she yelled, firing the weapon.

_"No..."_ thought Danny. _"No...please...I was your friend..."_

But it was too late...

"This for your fake friendship, DANNY FENTON!" she said, pulling the trigger.

Time slowed down again...as the ectoplasmic blast was slowly reaching Danny, something strange happened...

His emotions...caught between the rage of Sam's sacrifice and Valerie's relentless pursuit...somehow he found the ability to speak...

"NOOOOOO!" screamed Danny at the top of his lungs. His eyes snapped shut before the bazooka's annihilating force touched him...

"NOOO!" he screamed again, his arms raising in a futile attempt for a shield...

..."No?" asked Mr. Lancer, getting up after his fainting spell. "Mr. Fenton, what do you mean, saying that x doesn't equal 2? Justify yourself!"

Danny's heart, having taken its toll, stopped beating, as his head lifted from a desk that had appeared out of nowhere...

Plasmius was nowhere to be seen...Lancer wasn't on the ground, fainted...

Danny looked around...all eyes in the class were staring at him...

And Valerie wasn't there either...he was seated in his desk, his feet planted firmly on the ground...

He looked at himself...every eye was on him, but it wasn't because he was floating three feet in the air...

...It was currently because his homework assignment from last night was stuck to his forehead.

He had never turned it in.

Confusion in the class suddenly changed into peals of laughter as Danny quickly peeled off the sheet of paper on his forehead and ran up to the front of the class, depositing the assignment in the bin.

"Danny!" said Mr. Lancer. "Get back in your seat right now!"

Danny didn't say a word to his teacher, who was slowly building up with rage by the second. Grabbing the roll sheet from a potentially dangerous Mr. Lancer, he checked his own name.

"FENTON, DANIEL."

It didn't seem to matter that there were people watching, and that his teacher was slowly getting pissed off.

He was relieved, yet annoyed, that he was the victim of another dream attack.

That feeling of relief suddenly washed over him, as he brought himself to his knees, outstretched his arms, and said, "YES!"

Danny's sudden appraisal was watched on by the class with even more confusion, and then they just laughed even harder.

Everyone, except for Sam. Her head was in her cupped hands, feeling embarrassed for Danny.

Mr. Lancer looked down on him. He didn't seem too pleased.

"_Lord of the Flies! _Mr. Fenton, what are you doing?"

Danny stood up and faced Mr. Lancer. Realizing the mess he had just caused, he knew he had just made a fool of himself...

"Mr. Lancer, I'm sorry...I...I just..."

"...disrupted the entire class to show off your comedic sketches, and fell asleep in my class _once again!_" said his teacher, finishing for him. "Detention after school, Mr. Fenton! Now go back to your seat!"

It was like the ultimate walk of shame as Danny walked back to his seat, the whole class in absolute hysterics arond him. His cheeks burned with redness as he sat down, taking out a pencil to write down the rest of the notes.

"All right, people, settle down!" said Mr. Lancer. "Now, as I said before...in the equation 3x - 2 4, the correct answer for x is 2..."

"NOOOOOO!" screamed Dash, imitating Danny's sudden wake-up call. The class laughed again as the incident burned into Danny's ears like a searing mark.

"Haha, very funny, Mr. Baxter," said Mr. Lancer. "The next person to disrupt this class will join Mr. Fenton in detention."

The laughter abruptly stopped.

"Thank you," said Mr. Lancer. "Now...let me continue..."

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"Geez, Danny," said Sam as they walked out of algebra. "That was some stunt you pulled in class!"

"Yeah," said Danny. "And it's something everyone's not likely to forget anytime soon..."

He glumly looked around. Everyone from the class seemed to be running into friends and passing around his incident in class by either talking about it or imitating it. He sighed, knowing it would be a matter of hours before _everyone_ knew about it...

But at least it would only be about a Danny _Fenton_, and not a Danny _Phantom_...

His secret was safe, but his social life was going further and further down the drain.

He sighed again as they continued walking in the hallway. Tucker ran up to them.

"Hey, what's up?" he asked. "Hey, things look quite festive around here. Everyone's laughing and some are actually getting on their knees...it's nice to see that everyone is getting into the holiday spirit!"

"It's not the holiday spirit, Tuck," said Danny, greatly wishing that he was out of the hallway. "They're all making fun of me."

"You?" asked Tucker. "What happened?"

"Danny fell asleep in class today," said Sam. "And when he woke up, he made himself look like a total idiot."

"Yeah, that would sound like Danny," said Tucker, laughing a little.

"Hey!" said Danny. "If you were dreaming what I was, you'd be doing the same thing!"

"Oh, no!" said Sam. "You didn't have _another_ one of those 'premonitions,' did you?"

The half-ghost sighed. "Yes...I did. But I don't want to talk about it..."

"By the way you felt after you woke up, I'm sure you wouldn't," said Sam.

As the images returned to Danny's head, he remembered something he had asked earlier...perhaps it wasn't such a good idea...

"Sam?" he asked.

"What?"

"Uhh...that favor...I asked you to do, earlier...I realized...you _do_ have a lot of things out of common with her, and I shouldn't force you to do something you don't want to do..."

"What are you getting at?" she asked, with a curious-raising eyebrow.

"You don't have to talk with Valerie...you can do that whenever you're ready..."

"Are you sure?" asked Sam.

"Yes," said Danny. "Don't worry about it...I'll give you more time to think about it."

"OK," she said. "But that's too bad. I already had some things planned out to say to her..."

Little did Danny know, that was a lie. A big brass band was echoing in Sam's head.

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Things weren't any better at lunch, where Danny could barely pass by any group without hearing any gossip about him.

He was starting to feel really miserable when people started walking up to him.

"Hey Fen-_toad!_" said Dash. "Why don't you try out for the drama club? They're looking for comedic actors like you!"

"Yeah," said Kwan. "In fact, you might be good enough for the lead role!"

Laughter from the entire football team followed the two remarks.

"Just ignore them," said Sam.

But that was easier said than done. There wasn't single place to eat inside without seeing a laughing face.

It had been a harsh day. Another dream had gotten the better of him, and it involved another significant person in his life he thought he had lost...

There was only so much one person could take, and he was only fourteen.

Unable to face a single person, Danny headed for the doors leading to the outside world, his two best friends following after him.

"Danny, wait up!" said Sam, trying to balance her tray of salad.

"Yeah, dude!" yelled Tucker, starting to sprint after him with his tray of meatloaf. "Hold up, will you?"

_"Hold up?" _thought Danny, basically bursting through the doors. _"Why? For them to laugh at me even more?"_

Danny quickly turned the corner once he went outside, his two friends in hot pursuit.

He made sure he was out of earshot and seeing range from everyone in the school. Then, screaming, Danny flung his lunch bag to the ground and started taking out his frustration by pounding the brick wall of the side of the school. He was in the middle of his pounding fest just as Sam and Tucker showed up.

"DAMN IT!" screamed Danny, with each pounding of his fist towards the defenseless bricks. "DAMN IT!"

"Danny..." said Tucker, trying to reach out to him, but Danny shoved it away.

"I hate this school!" cried Danny. "Why can't I _ever_ have what I want?"

"What do you mean?" asked Sam.

"I can never be popular around this school! The only way I'm popular is through my _ghost_ side, and even then, there are other ghosts and a _ghost hunter_ who want to get me whenever I become that ghost!"

Tucker and Sam exchanged fearful glances. This was not the Danny they knew...

"You guys...just...go..." said Danny, his head lying against the bricks.

"We're your _friends_, Danny," said Tucker. "We're not going anywhere until we can get through to you...I mean, geez, man! Look at yourself!"

"Yeah, he's right," said Sam, also trying to calm Danny down. "You _have_ changed...you used to take Dash's bullying with ease. Now you're taking it too seriously..."

"It's these _stupid _dreams!" yelled Danny, pounding the brick wall again. "Ever since I've had them...things have been changing...usually for the worst..."

The trio was so busy wondering about Danny's problems and fears that they weren't noticing their surroundings.

Several birds on the electrical wires were suddenly taking flight...

The weather was changing...the sun was slowly being taken over by dark, billowing clouds, and a warm wind started blowing through the air...

Something was heading their way...

"Seriously guys," said Danny. "There are just some days that I feel so...so..."

Suddenly Danny stopped in mid-sentence. His eyes were wide, and full of fear.

"What's wrong, Danny?" asked Tucker.

Danny continued the silence as he looked around, waiting...

Tucker got the message. "Don't tell me...there's one of them...out there..._right now?_"

Tucker watched as his friend shivered, and then answered the question nonverbally as a puff of ectoplasmic smoke escaped from his mouth...

This was followed by another voice in the air...which finished his sentence for him.

_"This makes you feel, what, child?...Miserable?"_ said the voice.

Danny and his friends slowly turned around to see the visitor.

...But it was the half-ghost adolescent that suddenly felt another serious attack of déjà-vu as he was staring at a dark, ragged female spirit, completely colored black...

_Cliffhanger! And I'm sorry to say that it will be about a week before the next update...I've got many things on my plate right now...finals and working, ugh...but please continue the reviews!_

_Chapter 5 ASAP!_


	5. Into the Fire

_A/N: Thanks for waiting, people. This should be your answer to my previous cliffhanger._

_**Chapter 5 - Into the Fire**_

Memories, long forgotten, came back to haunt Danny as the surrounding air suddenly changed from a pleasant warmth to a chilling cold.

...his past two dreams...

...the ghost beetles that infested Casper High...

...and the more prominent memory...the incident with the dominoes that almost killed his sister...

If there was any other ghost that Danny disliked other than Vlad Plasmius, it had to be Spectra...whenever she was around, it was as if she had to pluck every single mistake he had ever made in the past and make him feel insecure...

And it _had _to be in the coldest area possible...the cold almost always made him feel miserable...

The Christmas holidays...one of the coldest points of the year...no wonder she was here...this area could be her foreground of destruction, feeding on any possible remnant of teen misery she could get her hands on.

"Well, Danny," she said, with a grin. "Did I come at a bad time? The _whole _school putting you down? Calling you a _loser?_"

Tucker and Sam were a bit uneasy about this line. They knew how Danny felt about being called a loser...

And Danny was feeling every word drill into his head. Trying to shove the thought of his social life going down in tatters, he preferred not to answer.

"What are you doing here, Spectra?" he asked, changing into his ghostly form.

"I was just _around,_" she said, still smiling. "Seeing if I could get my hands on any _miserable_ teen! You know how the holidays can take their toll on some certain people who take them too seriously. And it looks like I might have hit the jackpot!"

"Oh, man," said Tucker. "This isn't good..."

That statement was quite true. Danny's hands were suddenly shaking.

Spectra continued speaking. "Oh, look, the ghost boy is _shaking!_ What's wrong, Danny? Those _dreams_ suddenly getting to you?"

Danny froze, along with Sam and Tucker How did she...?

"How do I know that, you ask?" asked the dark spirit. "Let's just say it's a ghost thing. Some how are those _dreams,_ Danny? Anything to do with those"

Danny tried to suppress the thoughts of Dash, Kwan, and the dreams full of darkness, but it felt as if he was suddenly losing control of his doubts...

His body suddenly started glowing green. His misery was shown through the glow's radiance, and it was quite strong...

"Danny!" yelled Sam. "Don't listen to her! Fight it!"

Danny did his best, but it felt as if every haunting memory was raining down upon him...

Clutching his head from all the past incidents, he screamed in agony from all the stress he was placing upon himself.

"Ahh!" she said, sniffing the air. "Teen misery! How marvelous! You'll make a perfect start to my holiday treatments!"

She flew at him, attempting to grab him.

It took a split second...as she was flying towards him, he sudenly thought of all the times that he was able to beat her off.

The misery suddenly turned to rage, and the green light changed to red.

"Only if you can catch me!" said Danny, suddenly charging back at her.

Noticing the change in surrounding light, Spectra flew out of the way. Danny spun around, trying to locate her.

A flash of green light hit him in the face. Danny spun towards the pavement, skidding into it with his back.

"Ouch," said Tucker, watching.

Shaking it off, Danny flew up and fired a ghost ray of his own at her.

Flying out of harm's way once again, she flew directly at him, attempting to grab him and absorb his misery from the pain from the skidding.

Danny avoided the tackle by putting up a protective shield with his hands.

Unable to stop herself in time, and flying into the shield, Spectra felt herself being zapped with ghostly electricity and went flying out of control, spinning through the air.

He now had to act quickly. In her vulnerable state, he knocked her to the ground and blasted her with a ghost ray.

The blast hit her in the side, and sent her flying towards a dumpster, screaming.

"Yes!" said Tucker, giving his friend some encouragement. "Way to go, Danny!"

Acknowledging the cheering, Danny quickly flew towards where she lay. He attempted to take out the Fenton thermos and suck her inside...

...only to have it knocked out of his hand by a flying star.

His hands in pain after the sharp star gashed through his silver glove and opening the skin within, Danny dropped the thermos, hands bleeding.

Sam and Tucker looked around to see who did that. Their eyes located a ghostly green ninja standing on top of the school roof.

_"Bertrand!"_ said Sam, her fists tightening.

"Foolish boy!" said the ninja, flying down to Danny's level. "You thought you can defeat her? You'll have to get through me to do it!"

"Bring it on!" said Danny, his attention turning towards him.

Bertrand threw a series of throwing stars at Danny.

Avoiding them all, Danny fired a series of ghost rays at the shape-shifter.

Matching Danny's speed, Bertrand avoided all of the blasts.

"You've certainly gotten faster," said Danny, looking at him.

"You have _no_ idea," said Bertrand, firing a throwing star at Danny.

He couldn't avoid it in time. It ripped across his leg, and the resulting gash started bleeding. Danny winced, along with Sam and Tucker.

Bertrand took the chance. Taking out his nunchaku, Bertrand spun the weapon in his hands and knocked Danny in the face with it as he was trying to recover from the sneak star attack.

Danny careened in a wide arc toward the school billboard and smacked into it with his back, knocking off all of its attachable letters.

The half-ghost slid to the ground and fell at the billboard's base, the letters scattered all around him.

The sight of the letters gave him an idea...and fighting fire with fire was what he usually did protecting the town.

"Oh, ghost kid!" said Bertrand, looking around. "Had enough yet?"

He got his answer with a giant black K spinning into his face and knocking him to the ground.

"Ahh!" he said, covering his face. "What is this?"

His answer came in the form of a flying X and A hurtling towards him.

They pinned Bertrand to the ground, which was just enough time for Danny to grab the thermos before Bertrand could realize what was going on.

"Let's send you back where you belong!" said Danny, activating the thermos.

"AHH! NO!" screamed Spectra's assistant, getting sucked inside its inner recesses.

"Yes!" he said, capping the thermos. He flew over to his friends, who were still waiting in the dark corner of the school.

"Way to go, man!" said Tucker.

"That was great, Danny!" said Sam. "I knew you could do it!"

"Well," said Danny, "if it weren't for you guys, I seriously wouldn't have been able to -"

His words were suddenly cut off from a blast that sent him flying far away from his friends, ending their little celebration.

"AHH!" he screamed, being catapulted away from his best friends.

Landing in some bushes, he regained his senses, realizing he had forgotten all about Spectra.

His dazed eyes locked onto a flying target.

But there was a problem...this target wasn't black...she was dressed in red, riding a machine, and holding an ectoplasmic launcher...

"You stay away from them, Ghost!" said the figure, in a voice he recognized instantly...

It was Valerie.

_"Crap!"_ thought Danny. _"She shouldn't be here! She could get hurt! I could get hurt!"_

Flying out of the bushes, he faced her.

"Valerie," said Danny, trying to get her to back down, "it's not what you think..."

"_You _actually have the nerve to call me by my first name?" she asked. "It figures...but I also can't believe you have the nerve to actually try and capture two defenseless students, you stupid ghost kid!" she screamed at him.

"I wasn't trying to kidnap them! I was -"

"Enough of your excuses, Ghost!" she said, activating her launcher. "I can't trust you anymore!"

"But you -"

"Shut up, Ghost! This is for taking off my mask in front of my father!"

A blast erupted from the gun.

"Valerie!" said Danny, avoiding the blast by inches. "I had no choice! You could have been -"

"A hero of the town!" she finished for him. "But _you_ had to come along and ruin my life even further! I should have never taken that truce with you!"

"Valerie, you have to listen to me...you're in serious danger right now...you have to -"

She cut him off again, finishing his sentence. "Destroy you, the thing that is giving the town grief right now!"

"Oh, man," said Danny out loud.

There was no stopping her. She was _really _mad...

"Eat this, ghost kid!" she said, about to pull the trigger on her gun.

He closed his eyes, hoping for some miracle...

But he didn't get the kind he was hoping for...she was knocked away from a blast that hit her in the back.

"AHH!" she screamed, caught off-guard.

Danny watched helplessly as Valerie's body took the surprise hit and flew straight into a rose bush...

Valerie wasn't moving...she was unconscious.

His eyes shifted from her to the person that blasted her with the ray...which of course, was Spectra, who finally recovered from her earlier blows from Danny.

"Well, I don't know who that was," said Spectra, "but I _had_ to get rid of her...she's quite annoying..."

Danny was now full of rage. Enough damage had been done.

"YOU!" he said, flying at her at full speed.

"Oh, _please_," she said, blasting him with a ghost ray. "Rage always causes a person to lose common sense..."

"GAAAHHH!" he screamed, trying to fight the pain as he careened towards the ground...glowing green...

Landing on his back, he tried to get up, but was forced back down when she stepped on his chest.

"Ahh, there we go!" she said. "Your doubts and miseries...all flying into me! You have no idea how good this feels!"

"Get off of me!" he said, trying to force her away.

"Why would I do that?" she said, as her appearance suddenly changed from a dark spirit to a young female. "All this misery you held within you...it's like a walking spa treatment!"

It was no use...he felt himself getting weaker and weaker as she absorbed his power through his misery...soon he was to be powerless...

"Danny!" yelled Tucker.

He was getting weaker...and there was nothing he could do about it...

He looked up at Spectra's laughing face...it reminded him of all the students in the school that were making fun of him...it was just more misery for Spectra to absorb...

Danny's eyes grew dim as he was slowly losing consciousness...he didn't notice that there was another person there, watching from the shadows once again...

That person forced Spectra off of him with a blast from a certain lipstick ectoblaster...

"AHH!" screamed Spectra, getting blasted away from Danny.

Sam and Tucker were aghast. _Another person to join the fight?_

The person stepped out of the shadows.

Danny's best friends stood, dumbstruck, at the fifth person to enter the fray of attacks. Where did _she _come from?

"Get away from my brother!" screamed Jazz.

"Huh?" said Spectra, looking at her, and recognizing her from the earlier encounter. "Oh, you're the little brat's older sister! Let's see what misery you hold within you!"

"I beg to differ about misery!" said Jazz, taking out the Fenton Peeler.

Spectra suddenly stopped her charging as her eyes locked onto the weapon, the same weapon that had been used to defeat her the first time...

"NO! NOT THAT!" she shrieked.

"Yes, this!" said Jazz, activating it.

The Fenton Peeler's ghost suit surrounded Jazz's body. It shot out at Spectra...

Spectra's screams were the last thing Danny heard...

With most of his power drained out of him, he lost his grip on consciousness. As he involuntarily changed back into his human form, he last thing he saw before he closed his eyes was Sam and Tucker running up to him...

His final thought..._"Am I going to be all right?"_

Only the future could tell, as his head fell backwards against the soft grass...

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He awoke in a strange room with a blurred vision...what time it was, he had no clue...

But as his vision got clearer, there was a damp washcloth on his head, and he was lying on a cot...that pretty much narrowed it down...

He heard voices...they sounded oddly familiar, sort of like Sam, Tucker, and Jazz...

And the owners of the voices were standing right over him...

"He's awake!" said Sam, yelling. "Danny! Are you all right?"

He raised his hand to his forehead. It was hot. Was he running a temperature?

"W-what's going on?" he said, shakily. "What am I doing here?"

"You lost consciousness after you changed back into your regular self...but Jazz saved you from Spectra," said Sam. "But she got away before we could suck her into the Fenton thermos."

Danny groaned. He _hated_ it when there was a ghost on the loose...and that was _especially_ during a holiday, when he was supposed to have a day off...

But at least Bertrand wouldn't be there to help her...

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by another visitor who suddenly came into the room, a person covered with cuts and bruises...

Danny wanted to tell Valerie that she was pretty much in good condition after being thrown into that rose bush...but knowing that saying something like that would put him in a worse spot, he decided to play the innocence factor.

"Hey, Valerie," he said a bit shakily, since there was a bit of worry in his voice about how much she might have seen. He then questioned her injuries "Ouch, what happened to you?"

"I was thrown into a rose bush by that stupid ghost kid and knocked unconscious," she said. "But enough about me...I heard that you fainted from heat stroke...are you all right?"

Danny looked at his friends and sister. _"A heat stroke?"_ he asked them with his eyes. _"You could have done better than that!"_

Valerie was still awaiting an answer. "Danny?" she asked with concern. "What's wrong? Are you all right?"

He snapped out of it. "I...uh...yes...I'm all right...I'm just...tired..."

"Well, at least _you're _all right," she said, getting up. "Just wait till I get my hands on that ghost kid...I don't know how he hit me from the back, but seriously...I'll get him..."

Danny spoke up. "Yes, Valerie, perhaps..." he said, forcing himself to swallow the fact that it was Spectra that did that.

"That ghost kid ruined my life, and I'll stop at nothing to ruin his!" she said.

Tucker and Sam started sweating.

"That's a promise!" she said, starting to limp out of the room. Suddenly she stopped.

"Danny?" she asked before she left. "I hope you feel better sometime soon. I'll bet this has something to do with that ghost kid, too!"

Danny gave her a smile that almost immediately vanished. If only she knew...

"See you later, Val," he said.

"Bye, Fenton," she said.

After she left, Sam, Tucker, and Jazz were left alone with him.

"Dang, man," said Tucker. "Danny, I don't know about your friendship with Valerie anymore...things are just getting way too risky."

"You're _friends_ with that person?" asked Jazz. "Sam and Tucker just told me that she hunts ghosts, but now you tell me that you're _friends_ with her?"

"Yes," said Danny. "I know it seems weird, but I want you guys to know that -"

"You're losing your mind?" Tucker finished for him.

"Guys," said Danny. "I don't know what it is, but there's just something about her that -"

Sam just about hit the ceiling. "Danny! You're talking crazy! Unless you're doing something like trying to _stop_ her from hunting ghosts, which I'm sure is _not_ the reason, then perhaps this is something I'll let happen...but you're not doing _anything_ like that!"

Tucker joined in the fray. "Valerie's your _enemy_, Danny. And she'll forever be your enemy unless you do something to change her mind about ghosts. And judging from that speech she just gave, it doesn't look like it's anytime soon! Eventually you're going to run out of excuses to defend her!"

"Will you just give it time?" asked Danny. "I'm sure that soon things might clear up in a positive way..."

"But Danny..." said Jazz. "...what if something positive doesn't show up?"

"Yeah," said Tucker. "If she finds out who you are, she'll start the endless questions...just hours ago you were talking about how much you hated being chased by a ghost hunter!"

"You're all just being overprotective!" said Danny. "Valerie and I have a lot of things in common -"

Sam interrupted him. "Fine," she said. "You do have something in common with her. You fight GHOSTS! That's what I see. But there's a huge difference between your fights!"

"What would that be?" asked Danny.

Sam crossed back over from her corner of the room and stood right in front of him.

"Your _reason_ for fighting them!" said the goth girl. "The reason YOU fight them is because you're trying to protect this town, to protect us! So everyone can live in peace! The reason SHE fights them is because she wants revenge! There's no heart into her fighting, unlike you! YOU want to protect this town from EVIL! SHE wants to protect this town from GHOSTS, whether or not they're trying to save the town! No matter how you look at it, you're fighting to save others. She's just fighting for herself..."

The part of Danny that was listening was hearing every single word...it seemed to make sense...he slowly sat up from his cot.

Sam got closer to him as her voice dropped in volume, and her hand touched his.

She didn't care that Jazz and Tucker were in the room. She had to get through to him.

"Don't you _see,_ Danny? Rage is what drives her...it's just like what Spectra said after you tried charging at her when _you_ were angry...rage sometimes causes people to lose common sense...she lost the sense about any ghost being good...she only wants to destroy them so she could have her life back, which in the beginning, you _have_ to admit, was pretty messed up...she was just like one of those shallow people. It took _everything _she owned before she _finally_ realized that she was with the wrong crowd."

Danny found himself looking at her, completely listening to everything Sam said.

"Look, Danny, I don't know if you heard the whole thing, but please, promise one thing..._just be careful_," she said. "I know you'll make the right decision..."

She hugged him...

At first he was surprised...he wasn't expecting something like that...

But soon the magic happened...for some reason...he felt himself return the hug...

"We're just looking out for you, Danny," said Sam. "It doesn't matter what happens to us. If all else fails, _you_ are the one who has to go on...not us..."

Jazz and Tucker watched on with a smile on each of their faces.

So the reason finally came out...they were concerned for _him..._not because they hated Valerie...

These _were_ his true friends...

But one thing was wrong...though it was a poignant moment, he developed a fear...the fear of letting go...

Though he had just established them to be more than just his best friends...he couldn't bear it if anything happened to them...he suddenly cared more about them than he did ever before...

And even more for the person he was currently hugging...it was just like the time he cared more for his sister after the time she finally told him she knew about his secret...Sam suddenly meant a lot more to him...

Danny knew that as soon he broke out of this hug, his friendship with Valerie would never be the same.

...just in time for the holidays...

_End of Chapter 5...6th coming soon..._

_A/N: I won't be near my computer for another week, meaning another long update wait. (Sorry about that...) So please continue the reviews...hopefully there's a lot by the time I get back...but of course, I have no control over that, do I?_

_Signed, BlackShadow875_


	6. Snow Fall in Amity Park

_A/N: Hey everyone. I hope you all had a good Thanksgiving. Here's the sixth chapter._

_**Chapter 6 - Snow Fall in Amity Park**_

_December 14th...two weeks later..._

Awakening from another slumber, the half-ghost woke up on a Friday morning to realize that it was snowing outside.

For once, the forecasters were correct about one thing...it _did_ snow last night. But unfortunately, it didn't snow as much as the forecasters predicted...only five inches had fallen so far.

The teen groaned. He had been counting on it to snow so much that the school would be closed.

_"Ugh...five inches, they predicted **thirty-five**...those people are never right..." _he thought.

Just like the rain that was predicted two weeks ago...it never happened.

But at least there were some things that were getting better. The whole bit about his incident in algebra class had finally dissipated after hearing it from Dash and Kwan for four days.

It disappeared after he had a run-in with the Box Ghost.

Up to his nonsense, as usual, the Box Ghost made his way onto the campus and started wreaking havoc in his destructive, yet usually comical, fashion.

But he _did_ give Mr. Lancer a fright when he leapt out of the box that was used to store leftover chalk...

After the class ran for their lives, he went ghost and beat the hell out of him. It was basically a one-sided fight.

The students of the school congratulated him as he walked out, or rather, flew out of the room with the Box Ghost inside of the Fenton thermos.

There was only one small thing that went wrong. After everyone dispersed and he attempted to fly away, Paulina ran out of the crowd and attempted to push him underneath the mistletoe when no one was watching. Though he liked the idea that he was getting attention from the girl he liked, he still couldn't ignore the fact that he couldn't let his ghost half get all the attention on her.

Plus, Sam was coming up the walkway just as Paulina forced him under the mistletoe.

Panicking, Danny had to come up with an idea, _quickly_.

_"Uhh..."_ he had said, _"I can't possibly...uhh..." _(an idea popped into his mind) _"Close your eyes! You don't expect me to do this with your eyes open, do you?"_

Paulina reluctantly agreed. _"Ohh! How exciting! I can't wait!"_

Closing her eyes, she puckered up.

Taking his chances, Danny turned intangible and slowly backed away from the door frame, leaving Paulina behind in her stance. He decided to wait for someone to show up and wonder what she was doing, basically for his own amusement.

And that person was Sam.

She walked up to Paulina, who was still waiting underneath the plant, her eyes still closed.

_"Uhh...Paulina?"_ asked Sam, with a bemused look on her face. _"What are you doing?"_

_"Huh?" _said Paulina, snapping out of it. _"Where is he?"_ A look of wonder formed across her face for a split second before it quickly rearranged back into a smile.

_"What's going on?"_ aked Sam, still confused.

Paulina seemed strangely happier than ever when she said her next line.

_"Oh, I get it! He's playing 'Hard to Get!'"_

Sam's rolling eyes were the last thiing he saw before he laughed under his breath and flew out of the classroom and into the empty cafeteria, where changed back into his normal self.

As he waited for Sam to meet up with him for lunch, he got word from her that everyone was talking about how Danny Phantom was the one that saved the school from another ghost attack. No one was talking about his antics in algebra class anymore, but Paulina was still dreamily speaking about the ghost boy...

He felt a lot better, knowing that he was slowly making his way back up the social spectrum with no one making fun of him anymore.

Such was that moment, ten days ago, as the memory faded back into his mind...

But one memory still remained...the incident in the nurse's office.

He _was_ going to through with it about talking to Valerie, but she never appeared during those two weeks. The cold weather was getting to her, and she was sick with pneumonia for two weeks.

And he had visited her several tims to see how she was...without telling anyone where he was going...

Today was her day to return to school, but the fact that he was her only visitor actually worked in reverse of what his friends and sister asked him to do.

Now she was _closer_ to him.

If he showed up at school where Valerie could thank him about visiting her, he'd be in dangerous waters if Sam and Tucker were around.

He wondered, as he lay in his bed, how he was going to avoid Valerie.

_"Perhaps I should pretend I'm sick?"_ he thought.

Actually, that was another bad idea. She could hear about his sickness, and then visit _him_. That would make things worse, with his sister around.

There was only one way. He'd have to try and avoid her.

It was a risky situation, but perhaps he could make up some story later, like it was mainly to avoid catching whatever was left of her cold...

"Danny! Breakfast!" yelled his mother from downstairs, cutting off his train of thought.

It looked like he was going to have to wait on this one. Jumping out of bed and hurriedly dressing in his trademark outfit, along with a thick jacket, he slid downstairs on the bannister again to enjoy another breakfast with his family.

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"Geez," said Tucker, as they walked away from the school after the final bell rang. "I'm so glad school's out right now. Combined with the weather, and Lancer's raving about frostbite in biology today, I didn't think I was going to make it!"

"Yeah," said Sam, agreeing. "I'm usually the dark one around here, but _he's _the one that always puts negativity into things."

"Probably because the faculty member who pulled out his name in the schoolwide Secret Santa doesn't want to do it," said Tucker.

"That might explain some things," said Sam. "Speaking of that Secret Santa stuff, who did you get?"

"I ended up with Dash Baxter," said Tucker. "Can you believe all the rotten luck?"

"_You_ think you've got it bad?" asked Sam. "I've got Paulina! I can't think of anything worse than that!"

"Actually, I can think of several things that are worse," said Tucker.

"Oh, you!" she said.

"Ah, guys, don't worry about it," said Danny. "the main thing is, we're out, we've got a homework-free weekend ahead, and there's only one more week of school before we're out for Christmas vacation!"

Tucker and Sam looked at each other in surprise, and then smiled at him.

"Thanks, man," said Tucker, high-fiving him. "I needed to hear that."

"Yeah," said Sam. "Where did _you,_ out of all people, get optimistic all of a sudden?"

"I don't know," he said. "I guess I might be getting over this dream thing...I haven't had one since the day I saw Spectra."

His friends smiled, finally knowing that their friend had finally returned to them.

"Well," said Tucker, "We have a free weekend. What do you guys want to do?"

As he was thinking about some random activity, Danny heard a female voice in the distance, accompanied by running footsteps.

He knew who it was almost immediately.

Thinking quickly, he said, "I have an idea!"

"What is it?" asked Tucker.

"It's called 'Race-to-the-internet-cafe-quickly-before-I-murder-you-guys-on-our-saved-game-on-Doom!'"

He sprinted off before they formed a meaning to the mess of words he just said.

"Oh, no, you don't!" said Tucker, running after him. "There's no way you're going to get a head start on that! Without our help, you wouldn't have even _made it _past level 12!"

"Then try and stop me!" said Danny, laughing, looking behind him, having gotten a head start on his friends.

"Get back here, you CHEATER!" yelled Tucker, playfully.

"Hey guys, wait up!" yelled Sam, trailing far behind. "I'm wearing snowboots, you know!"

"We're wearing them, too! It looks like you won't beat us today if you can't catch up with us!" said the African-American.

"HEY!" she yelled. "I can beat you guys _anyday!_"

"Then prove it!" yelled Tucker.

"I'll show you!" she yelled, gaining ground on him.

The three disappeared from sight before the fourth running person that started it all could even make a point of her own existence. With a stunned looked of amazement on her face, she just stopped, and rested, wondering why they left so quickly.

Valerie took the time to replay the day's events in her head.

It hadn't been a pleasant day. First off, no one acknowledged that she was even gone for two weeks. It was saying something like if she had disappeared off the face of the earth, no one would even notice. Next, Lancer gruffly told her that staying out in the cold too much caused her pneumonia, and told her in order to make up for her absences, she'd have to write a long essay on weather patterns, which was due next week on Monday. She only had three days.

On the previous night before she returned, she had some really strange dream about phantoms surrounding her while she was in ghost hunter mode...she wasn't able to fight any of them off, and they cornered her. They were about to attack, but she woke up before they could do so. All she could remember was the cold sweat pouring down her face.

And worse, speaking of cold, her friend, Danny Fenton, seemed to be giving her the cold shoulder all day...

Was something wrong?

Everything in the beginning seemed fine...but now she was experiencing emotional qualms about this sudden change in her friend.

Valerie wondered aloud. "It looked like he's been avoiding me all day...why isn't he talking to me right now? He seemed fine when he visited me all those times..."

Her mind answered her question. _"Maybe Danny Phantom got to him and changed his mind about you..."_

"Shut up!" she told herself. "Fenton's my friend! His family _hunts_ ghosts! There's no way a ghost can do that to him!"

_"Suit yourself...you're probably just fooling yourself, you know..."_

"Shut up!" she said again. "I know Fenton...he's trustworthy...there's nothing to hide, especially if he's my best friend..."

_"Whoever said he was your friend? It could be a pity-type friendship, you know..."_

"SHUT UP!" she yelled out for a third time.

She couldn't believe this...her _own _mind...

Out of all things, why was her own mind disagreeing with her? She was actually arguing with herself! How could she be her own bully? Her own tormentor?

As she turned around, walking towards the direction of her own home, the events of her bitter day started raining down on her like a storm that never ceased.

"Perhaps this little situation will pass sometime soon..." she told herself, her head down, looking at the sidewalk, covered with white snow.

And she hoped it would be soon. She felt herself becoming lonelier every day.

Sighing, it looked like it was going to be the first ever Christmas that she was going to hate.

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_One hour later..._

"_You_ are such a _CHEATER_!" yelled Sam as they emerged from the internet cafe. "I've never seen so much use of that cheat in my life!"

"Oh, come on, Sam!" said Danny. "You used to do that totem pole trick all the time! Especially when you helped me fight off Technus!"

"I didn't use it _that _much!" she said, shoving him playfully. "I only used it several times! Now as for using it during our fight with Technus, we _had _to! How else could we have gotten rid of him?"

A hilarious memory came back to mind as Danny remembered a fifty-foot Sam crush a helpless Technus to rubble and then toss him inside level zero...

"Yes, I guess you're right," said Danny. "Maybe I should use that whenever there's a greater need for it..."

"Now that's more like it!" said Sam, happy that she got through to him.

"But this still sucks, though! How did we lose all seven Silver Keys to the Apocalypse, _again_?" asked Tucker. "It was as if the same thing happened from before!"

"You mean from the point that we were about to win last time, only to get killed before we could even turn the key?" asked Sam.

"Exactly!" said Tucker. "Who's doing this?"

Just as those words escaped his lips, Mr. Lancer, in a brown trench coat and wearing sunglasses, slowly sneaked away from the trio before they could recognize him.

"Oh well," said Danny. "That can be for another day. Let's go do something else."

"How about going to the Nasty Burger?" suggested Danny. "All that online game playing has really worked up an appetite for me."

"Sure," said Sam. "You can count me in for that. Of course, I'll be having a salad, though..."

"Count me in, as well," said Tucker. "I'm starving. I didn't really want to eat the cafeteria food today...it looked kind of green."

"You can count me in, as well," said a mystery female voice.

Danny and friends turned.

"Jazz!" Danny exclaimed.

"Hey, Danny!" she said, waving from inside her car. "Need a ride?"

"Sure!" they all said, piling into the automobile.

Danny felt really good, as his sister drove them to the restaurant. His luck seemed to be getting better and better without those dreams.

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It was about 5:30 when they came out of the restaurant in greater spirits.

"Oh man," said Jazz, laughing. "I can't believe you did that!"

"Well," said Danny, his eyes watering. "I _did _do it. Now pay up."

Jazz opened up her purse and gave Danny a twenty-dollar bill.

"Geez," said Tucker. "Who knew that anyone could swallow fourty packets of Nasty Sauce without water? That stuff's freakin' HOT!"

"Better not let him take a hot shower tonight," said Sam, joking. "He might explode!"

"In fact," said Jazz, "I think you better get back home right now. You almost passed out on us after you ate that second-to-last sauce packet!"

"No, I'm fine," said Danny. "Just give me another bottle of water."

"Finished with your third one _already_?" asked Sam, handing over a fourth. "I'll bet there's a fire going down there in your stomach right now!"

Danny laughed as he literally inhaled the beverage.

"Listen, guys," said Tucker. "It's been fun, but I realized that I have some things to do right now, so I better get back home."

"Me too," said Sam, handing Danny a fifth bottle of water. "I've got another Goth Poetry Slam down at the bookstore. It starts in like fifteen minutes."

"Let us give you a ride," said Jazz. Knowing the town, she knew that the bookstore and Tucker's house were convienently less than four blocks from each other.

"Are you sure?" asked Tucker. "You already did us a favor, driving us down here."

"No, I'm perfectly fine with this," said Jazz. "I've got nothing to do right now."

"Well, thanks," they said, piling into the car.

"No problem," said Jazz, smiling.

And after Danny took another swig of water, they were off.

"I wonder what I'm going to get Dash for that Secret Santa thing," said Tucker, glumly. "Maybe I can get away with getting him a football or something...or I could give him a joke present, like coal. I can leave him a note, saying that he could smear it under his eyes or something for football games..."

"I don't think it will go over well," said Sam. "We're among the few people he dislikes, and he'll probably trace it back to us in no time."

"Oh man!" said Tucker, disappointed. "Well, I guess it's back to a boring present once again."

"Speaking of presents," said Sam. "I suppose I can get Paulina that sweater she's been crooning over..."

"The one that is causing a craze right now to everyone in Amity Park?" asked Danny quickly.

"You mean to everyone except me? Yeah, I might as well," said Sam. "She's always blabbering to her friends aloud about how she's a size small, so I decided right now that I should get it for her."

"Hmph...I guess," said Danny.

Sam then remembered another detail that was never mentioned. In fact, Danny never even brought it up.

"Danny?" she asked. "Who do you hav-"

"We're here!" said Jazz, interrupting.

Sam looked up. The bookstore was right in front. _"No!"_ she thought. She wanted to finish her question.

Oh well. She had about two minutes before it started. And Tucker was already out of the car. She decided to save it for another day as she stepped out of the car.

"See you later!" said Danny, waving. "I'll call you guys so we can do some things this weekend."

"All right, dude," said Tucker. "See you later!"

"Yeah, bye," said Sam, slightly disappointed, but with a smile on her face.

"Bye!" said Jazz, driving off.

Danny took one last wave to his friends before they disappeared from sight.

As they were on their way back to the house, Danny was on his seventh bottle of water. Jazz decided to ask him a question.

"So, have you bought any presents yet?"

He thought that he might as well face the music. "No," he said.

_"No!"_ said Jazz. "Oh, Danny, I hope you don't have last minute shopping plans again!"

"Well, at least you won't have to drive me there like last year," said Danny. "Now that I've got these powers, I'll just fly back and forth between areas. No one will have to know."

"I just hope you know what you're doing," said Jazz. "The last thing I need is to see on the news is a ghost kid flying over Amity Park holding a shopping bag full of merchandise."

"I'll fly invisible," said Danny. "Now that I've got some money, I can start tonight."

Jazz laughed. "Now I'm starting to think that the bet you just pulled has something to do with a lack of Christmas money."

"It's got _nothing_ to do with that!" said Danny. "I meant that my allowance is coming up tonight, so I have some money there. I mean, maybe I can start with that Secret Santa thing or something..."

"Oh, I forgot about that," said Jazz. "Who do you have?"

"I don't want to say," said Danny.

"Oh, _come on_," said Jazz, slightly irritated. "Will you at least tell me if it's a boy or a girl?"

Danny thought that he might as well give her this clue.

"It's a girl," he said.

"Hmm," said Jazz. "Judging by the amount of time it took for you to say that, I'm guessing that it's someone that I know."

Danny suddenly stopped and stared.

Jazz continued. "And by the way you're suddenly staring at me after I said that, I'm right. But I wonder who it can be?"

Their house was coming up. He had never been so happy to see it.

After they stopped, Danny got outside before he could give his sister another clue with his behavior.

Walking up to the front door, he unlocked the front door and called out to see if his parents were around.

Two things caught his eye. One of them was a note next to the phone, from his parents.

_Dear Danny and Jazz,_

_Your father and I are out Christmas shopping. We'll be out late, so you'll have to fend for yourselves. Dinner is in the freezer, use the oven or microwave to heat it up._

_-Mom_

The second thing was the phone itself. There was a message on the answering machine.

Pressing the button, Danny listened to the message.

Jazz, meanwhile, was still in the car, deep in thought. She'd stop at nothing to find out who Danny had to get a present for.

_"Hmm...it's a girl, and it's someone I know...maybe it's Paulina? No, Sam's got Paulina...perhaps it's Star? Very unlikely...maybe it's one of his closer friends...but then that means it could be-"_

"JAZZ! SHE'S HURT!" screamed Danny, suddenly bursting out of the door.

Her cognitive stance broken off, Jazz whirled her head in his direction.

She didn't hear what he said at first, so she thought he might need another bottle of water. But then she saw the expression worn on his face.

There was a look of panic on his face. He was out of breath, panting heavily.

Soon, the same panic started spreading across her own face. Someone was hurt...that could _never _be any good news.

"What's wrong? Who's hurt?" she asked.

"Message on the answering machine...there's been an attack! We have to go to the hospital!" Danny heaved out. "And we have to leave now!"

_End of Chapter 6..._

_Yep, another cliffhanger! Once again, please review. I'll update ASAP._


	7. The Visitor

_A/N: I'm sorry it took a long time, but with the combined stress of a constant homework workload, studying for my upcoming finals week, and not to mention a little writer's block, it was a little hard. So here's your other answer to another cliffhanger._

_I see got a question regarding the reason for the title of this story, so I tried answering that by incorporating that into the chapter. I may still have second thoughts, though (changing the title, that is)._

_Just so everyone knows, italics are Danny's thoughts._

_I await your reviews...here's your next chapter._

_**Chapter 7 - The Visitor**_

Racing down the boulevard at 80 mph wasn't something Jazz was expecting to do anytime before she turned 18.

But with one of Danny's friends hurt at the hospital (and her parents out of sight), she was willing to make an exception. But something that really surprised her was that Danny was urging her to speed up when the light changed to amber. Luckily there were no cops around.

They arrived at the hospital gates in about three minutes.

"Danny," Jazz said, "Who's hur-"

He didn't give her any time to finish. He sprinted out of there before she could say another word.

"Oh, don't wait for me!" she yelled after him in sarcasm. "I'll just catch up!"

Literally bursting through the doors, Danny frantically looked for the person who made the call.

He was sitting in the lobby, waiting patiently, his face buried into his hands

Walking up to him, the teen gave him a slight smile of encouragement.

"How is she doing?"

The adult looked up to see who it was. When it was confirmed, he returned the smile, but in a sad way. "How are you doing, Danny? Did you get my message?"

"Hello," said Danny. "Yes, I did. I'm sorry to hear about her. How is she?"

"Let me show you," he said, leading the way down the corridor.

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Turning corridor after corridor, the adult continued speaking.

"Thank you for coming, Danny. I knew I could count on you. You are, after all, her best friend. She's been asking for you."

"For me? What happened to her?"

"We spent a few hours in the ICU (A/N: That's _intensive care unit_, for all non-medical people out there), but now it seems that she's getting better. She's been moved to her own room on the medical floor. So I'm guessing it must have been some sort of shock to her system. But as for exactly what happened, she won't tell me. I just found her collapsed on the street. It's as if she's trying to keep something from me. But for some reason, she's been asking for you, specifically. I don't know why, but I expect it had to be urgent, that's why I gave you that call."

Danny gulped. He knew this couldn't be good.

"Well, here we are," he said, stopping in front of a room.

The adult opened the door.

"Hey, someone's here to see you," he said, motioning Danny to come inside.

"Thanks, Dad," said a voice inside.

Danny peered into the room. It contained a very glum-looking Valerie sitting upright on her bed.

Sitting upright without any aid? It retrospect, she seemed OK. Danny had no idea why she'd be in the ICU in the first place, but from the look on her face, she'd seen better days. Cuts and bruises from the Spectra attack two weeks ago were broken open again, and bleeding.

All right, so seeming all right wasn't exactly the best choice of words.

"I'll leave you two alone," said Mr. Gray, closing the door.

"Thanks," said Valerie, slightly smiling. Danny almost felt pity. Her smile was so weak...so full of trust...

But now it was just them. Valerie shifted her eyes in his direction.

"Listen, Danny, I just want to thank you for coming," she said.

"No prob," he said in response. But the mere thought about his friends finding out that he was here gave him a sickness to his stomach. And this was especially in Jazz's case, who brought him here in the first place. He should have just flown.

Why did he come here? He had promised to avoid her. Did it take her getting hurt to suddenly fly back in her direction? Was this visit basically for pity?

And another prominent question popped into his head. Would this friendship with Valerie now have to be a secret? It didn't seem like he would be living up to his promises back when he was in the nurse's office.

Though he knew it would be a lot harder for a time, Valerie was his friend, whether or not she was an enemy. Plus he kind of knew about her own secret when he met her 10 year-older character during the time he had to get away from his evil side...

She liked him...

Was this the reason they remained friends? Just because he knew about it?

Or was it the fact that he kind of liked her back? Or just wanted another friend?

All senses of confusion and twisted logic poured into Danny's head as he thought about his current situation.

It was just like the time Kitty took over Paulina's body to make Johnny 13 jealous...this friendship completed another paradox that he experienced before...a four-sided triangle.

Paulina hated Danny Fenton, but adored Danny Phantom. Valerie despised Danny Phantom, but liked Danny Fenton.

And Sam...she was always shady about this topic...though she was his best friend, she _had_ shown signs, especially during the times with Ember and Desiree. Other than his sister, she was one of the first girls he had learned to trust...which was the reason they were friends...

And another thought...a line, in fact, that she had said to him two weeks ago...

_"Just be careful...I know you'll make the right decision..."_

That was during the time of the hug in the nurse's office...his decision about Valerie...

This pretty much sealed it..._what_ was he doing here? Sneaking away from his sister to see someone that was really an enemy?

To come here...this wasn't a good decision...it was a decision based on panic and jumping to conclusions...

He could leave right now. He could just drop in to say hello, and then be on his way...

But it never happened. Suddenly, a scream pierced his mind, breaking off all train of thought.

His mind and eyes shifting back to the real world, he saw that Valerie had stood up, attempting to walk towards him. But her legs buckled and she was falling towards the ground, screaming...

Quickly retreating to her aid, he stopped her from falling and supported her on his shoulder.

"Ugh," she said. "Maybe I should wait until I'm stronger...thanks, Danny."

"You're welcome," he said, helping her sit back down.

But his mind wasn't approving.

_"What are you still doing here?"_

_I just helped her from falling..._

_"You shouldn't be here...you should not have taken that call...what are you doing with one of your arms around her?"_

_Supporting her so she can stand, you idiot!_

_"IDIOT? I'm you!"_

_Listen, let me call the shots right now, OK? We can leave later...right now I just have to help her..._

_"Fine...your call...but what are you going to do when Jazz finds out where you are, or if Valerie finds out WHO you are?"_

"SHUT UP!"

"What are you talking about, Fenton?" asked Valerie incredulously. "I'm not saying anything to you!"

"Huh?" said Danny, lost. Then everything shoved back into place.

Crap. He did it...again.

Arguing with his own mind, and then saying the next phrase out loud. Why was the phrase he yelled _always _"shut up?"

He tried apologizing. "I'm sorry, Valerie...I don't know what happened..."

She only stared back at him with curious eyes. Then she started laughing.

"What are you laughing at?" he asked.

"Nothing..." she said, now trying to suppress it. "I just thought that was funny, that's all..."

_"Now she thinks you're funny. Good job, dummy...she's now closer to you..."_

As much as he hated to hear that half, he knew that it was somewhat correct. As much as he liked Valerie before, he knew that he had to be a lot more careful.

"Listen, Danny," she said, "Please sit down. I wanted to talk to you. I have something to say."

Danny crossed over to her and sat down on her bed.

"What's wrong?"

"I have a secret. Something I've been meaning to say ever since we became friends."

His heart took a leap. A secret? What secret?

"It involves the reason I'm here right now."

The familiar perspiration beads formed on his head once again, although it was a cold room.

Valerie's voice quavered. "I...I..."

Closing his eyes, Danny felt a great urge to run from the room. _"Oh god...this can't be happening..."_

"I'm a ghost hunter. I got hurt...that's the reason I'm here."

Danny's eyes shot open again as he stared directly at her in astonishment.

She shared her secret about her being a ghost hunter?

It all happened in less than a second. He was first confused, upset, then...

...happy?

Happy that it wasn't the secret he thought it was going to be?

There were a million different things he wanted to say, do, or feel after she said that.

But there was only one correct way to do this to avoid her from being suspicious.

Wow, this was getting harder.

He chose to keep the astonished face, the eye contact, and a question with a mixture of curiousity and indifference.

"You're a _what?_"

Valerie smiled and looked down at the ground. "Heh, I knew that you would say something like that. After all...your parents are a pair of ghost hunters. I seriously had to get this off my chest."

Actually, including himself in the room, that would make the total four, in his book.

He continued his fake act of surprise, however, complete with a whistle and another question.

"Who else knows?"

Valerie's fists tightened. "My father knows...and _he_ knows..."

"I would expect you father, but he? Who's he?" he asked, knowing that asking something like that was likely start an eruption.

"Danny Phantom knows who I am. During the Pariah Dark thing, he ripped off my mask and exposed me to my father. All I was trying to do was my own part in helping save the town. That fuc...I mean, freaking jerk ruined my life...ever since I first met him."

_Great..._ he thought. _Maybe ripping off her mask wasn't the best idea. This is probably the reason she hates me so much now._

_"You got that right."_ said the other half of his head, the side greatly wishing to leave.

Danny ignored it, and asked another question. "How long have you been a ghost hunter?"

Valerie went through a long story, starting with the ghost dog incident and how Danny Phantom was part of it. He thought it was a little interesting, but also very irritating, to hear the story from another point of view. It was a series of misconceptions and misinterpretations. He felt like it was being with the media.

"That dumb ghost kid," she said. "I'd do anything right now to catch him. But I don't know anything about him, and it's driving me insane."

_"You're really asking for this, aren't you?"_

"But then a great person helped me," she said. "He knew what I was going through, I am so glad Vlad Masters is constantly there for me..."

_"WHAT?"_

That name...why did she come around to saying that?

Vlad, his archnemesis, viewed through her eyes as a great person?

He winced, and bit his finger to keep himself from exploding, from telling her that he was just using her to destroy him.

Valerie suddenly stopped, as she looked at Danny with inquisition. "What's wrong?"

It was hard for him to come up with words, let alone suppress his anger at the same time.

"I...can't believe it...the billionaire...he's helping you?"

"I didn't know it at first, but then he showed up at your house, and he told me everything. He was a good friend of your dad's, huh? I can't see the reason why not...I mean, he's a joker!"

_"Yeah, a Joker like a nemesis to Batman..."_ said the other Danny.

_Shut it!_

"But that's something else," she said. "I don't want to get off topic."

"So...is this Danny Phantom...he fought you, and this is the reason you're here, because you've been beaten so badly?" he asked.

Danny, of course, knew the answer was no, but he had another purpose...to find out who the culprit was.

"No," said Valerie. "But it was just as worse as if it were Danny Phantom fighting me. That's why I asked you here."

"Why would it be worse?" he asked. "It sounds like he's your number one target."

"Well, this one surprised me," she said. "It was a woman ghost this time...she called herself Spectra...hmm...why does that name sound so familiar?...kind of like that shrink that mysteriously disappeared after Spirit Week..."

"Spectra?" asked Danny, trying his best to pretend he didn't know anything. "What did she do?"

"She told me she had some bad news for me...that you weren't my friend anymore...that you were in contact with that ghost kid, and since he knew of your friendship with me, he told you to double-think your friendship with me since he isn't exactly so fond of me. I didn't know whether or not he told you if I was a ghost hunter...that's why I decided to tell you to start with."

Danny continued to blink.

"Anyway, I knew that you couldn't do that...you're not that kind of person...but she kept harping on it, and harping on it...and the next thing I know, I'm glowing green, and she grabs me...I could almost swear something about her changed, but I never saw it...I passed out, and now here I am, devoid of strength."

And soon, the two halves in Danny's head started to merge together again. He suddenly felt some type of spark in his legs...

"All alone out there, I felt so miserable, so helpless, because today you seemed to be ignoring me...I just have to ask, Danny...are you...still...my friend? Are these lies?"

His voice trembled. "W-why do you ask?"

She scooted closer to him. "Because I have to know something else."

His palms started sweating. "W-what would that b-be?"

Was his worst nightmare was about to come true? He should have just left right when he found out she was OK...

"I have to know. Do you like Sam, or me?

_"Oh, God..."_

This wasn't happening...wait, no this _couldn't_ be happening! She couldn't be...why was she asking this question now?

"Wh-what did you say?" he asked, slowly backing away.

"Just what I said. Do you like that goth _geek _Sam, or me?"

Now he was more in a rage than scared. She dared called his best friend a name? _His best friend?_

His voice was almost mechanical. "I...you...she..."

He had to get out of here. It was much too dangerous here.

With a flash of movement, he suddenly stood up and backed towards the door, upset and scared.

Valerie looked at him in confusion. She knew she had just said something wrong...

Did she ever! Danny had no control of his words, as they poured out of his mouth with all the emotion he had bottled up within him.

"You! Why are you asking me this? What kind of person are you, huh? Making me choose between friends, then _ridiculing_ them? Maybe Sa-, I mean, Danny Phantom is right! Moving this fast towards me? Making me feel pity just because you've been hurt? You are...are...well, you...you're something else!"

Valerie was aghast. "But Danny, I didn't mean it to be that way..."

"What way did you mean then? Why did you..." His hands flew up to his head. "Actually, no, don't explain."

Valerie remained her silence as her own emotions continued building inside her. The emotions that she did not want to experience...the ones she had when she was alone...

"Danny...I'm sorry...I shouldn't have called Sam a -"

"Little late for that, arent you?" he said, groping for the exit.

"Sorry, but, I...I have to go." Danny finished, backing out of the room and awkwardly turning the knob. "I have...to think about...augh, all of this...I can't believe you..."

Think about all of this? What kind of excuse was that?

It didn't matter. Danny left the room and started sprinting down the hall in a blind mix of turmoil and panic.

Sam, Tucker, and his sister had been right all along. Valerie, a friend...this friendship was way too dangerous. What had he been thinking?

Quickly sprinting into a bathroom, he leapt towards the sink and splashed his face with cold water.

He looked at himself. His eyes were bloodshot, and he was as pale as if he had turned ghost right now. His complexion, reflected on the shiny glass of the mirror, wore an expression that matched the same fearful one that he woke up with that one night.

Letting his humanity slip behind the shadows, he turned into Danny Phantom..._his _greatest secret...

His life as a half-ghost...this was _him_. He was staring at _him_. If Valerie found out about _him_, he wouldn't be staring at himself right now.

But as much he didn't want to say it, he sort of felt sorry for Valerie. She was the one who paid for being his friend in the first place, having fed Spectra all of her misery...

But then he also hated her because of the things she said...

And then he thought of the horrifying thought about how worse he would have felt if it was his sister, Tucker, or Sam in her place...

But he couldn't feel misery right now...she could be anywhere.

Spectra was right...the holidays may be a time, with falling snow, to have a fun time with good friends, but the representation of that happiness could become a symbolized glooming rainstorm if anything bad, or stressful, were to happen. And ironically, a lot of that happened around this time, whether it was something as farcical as getting angry about losing a parking space at a crowded parking lot, not getting the present wanted, or even feeling rejected.

This was human nature...and Spectra, once a human herself, knew that following stress that may lead to misery...

All she had to do was follow one teen stressing about the next thing they had to do...then she would absorb the misery, following one person after the next...everyone had it.

It was a perfect plan. He wondered why it never occurred to him.

So what were these dreams all about? She said it was a "ghost thing."

Did she somehow have anything to do with them? Is this what she did to everybody?

Or every _ghost_?

"Hey, what are you doing in here?" asked a voice.

Danny looked towards the door. It was a janitor. At first it seemed unusual why he would ask all of this, but then he noticed two things.

First, the sign outside read, "Patients Only." Second, he was in ghost mode.

Before the janitor could alert any security, he turned intangible and dropped through the floor.

Floating down to the first floor, he found Jazz sitting silently by herself, reading from a magazine. Mr. Gray was nowhere to be found.

Hiding behind a tall potted plant, he turned back into Danny Fenton and walked up to her.

"So how's Valerie?" she asked, without looking up.

So she knew who it was.

Plus she sounded angry. But she had a reason to. He left her without telling her who it was in the first place, and then abandoned her down here.

"I'm so sorry, Jazz," he said.

"You're lucky that Sam and Tucker aren't here." she said, looking up from his magazine. "Why couldn't you just _tell me_ that it was Valerie you were going to see?"

"I should have...you're right..."

"You should have told me," repeated Jazz.

"I was panicking...I'm sorry...but you were right about her..."

Jazz's anger melted a bit as she walked up to him. "Right about what?"

"She depises Danny Phantom, and I can't continue with that. Things are getting so much harder..."

She was about to say something, but then lowered her frustration and quickly turned it into a smile.

Jazz then hugged him, her usual way of saying that an apology was accepted.

"I know...you made a mistake...I could shove this into your face about this, but right now, I can already see that you've already figured this out on your own."

Danny felt a bit better, feeling comfort from his sister.

"C'mon, Danny," said Jazz. "Let's go home."

Home...the place he never felt he'd be so happy to be, especially with a pair of ghost hunters as his parents.

Together, they left the hospital, her arm around his shoulder.

_"So I guess I was right about my prediction from earlier,"_ he thought once he was sure his mind was no longer split. _"Valerie is a lot different. But what I just did...was this really the correct way to deal with this?"_

That was what Valerie was thinking, with tears in her eyes, as she watched their car leave the parking lot into the night, just as it started to snow once again...

But behind those watery green eyes stood another emotion...the mood she had always felt when she fought ghosts...

She hated Danny for taking the side against her. But even more than ever, she detested Danny Phantom. He took her friend away and swayed him to his point of view. Once she was out of here, she would stop at nothing to destroy his future.

Her hand tightening into a fist, she knew that there was no turning back.

_End of Chapter 7..._

_You guys know the drill. Please send me some reviews, and I'll do my best to try and finish Chapter 8 within the usual time frame I said from earlier._


	8. Choices You Make

_A/N: I'll just keep it short, to avoid droning...so I would like to say thank you for all that reviewed. Chapter 8, coming at you!_

_**Chapter 8 - Choices You Make**_

Awkward silences...another set of things Danny had never gotten used to.

It was filling the car when Danny and Jazz were on their way home. He had been wondering why the return trip was taking so much longer, but then he realized that this time they weren't driving at 80 mph in a panic.

He looked over to his older sister, who seemed to be paying attention to nothing else other than the road ahead, making sure every obstacle was cleared.

It had stopped snowing for a time that day, but now it was starting to come down again. The freezing temperatures chilled him to the bone as he rubbed his hands together vigorously to get some heat into them. Why did he have to forget his jacket? It was annoying.

And another annoying thing...there was a pain that was starting to grow, and it was down towards his stomach.

Jazz glanced at her brother. Watching his futile attempts at warmth, she turned on the heater.

It was less than a minute before warm air circulated the car, to Danny's sudden surprise. Looking over to his sister, who smiled back at him, he said "thank you" with his eyes and placed his icy hands against the warm vents. Though the snow softly pelted the car's exterior, he felt safe and warm within.

But the pleasant warmth wouldn't last. The familiar stop sign with bent edges was in his sights. That signified that there was only one turn to go before they reached Fentonworks. He'd be out in the cold again.

The silence continued, even as they parked the car and walked up to the front door, shivering.

Quickly shutting the door behind them, they noticed that the house was still empty. Their parents, Jack and Maddie, weren't back yet. Like always, they missed the drama that usually happened behind their backs.

The house was freezing. Danny automatically walked over to the thermostat and turned up the heat.

Turning on the lights in the kitchen, Jazz also noticed the note next to the phone.

"So that's the reason they never called me or you," she said, breaking the silence. "They've been gone the whole time."

"Yes," he said. "I'm sorry, never got around to saying that,"

The pain near his stomach suddenly increased. He knew he should tell his sister about it, but then he decided he'd better not. He just headed for the stairs.

"Well," said Jazz, yelling from the kitchen, "it says here that we'll have to fend for ourselves, but I'm not really all that hungry. How about I make us some cocoa?"

"I'd love some," said Danny, starting to run up the staircase. "But there's one thing I gotta do first."

Jazz noticed the slight aching in Danny's voice. At first she was worried, but then she remembered something that happened earlier. Something before this all happened.

The worry that entered her mind for a second suddenly turned into a laugh and a smile. "All right," she said.

"Thanks," yelled Danny, now sprinting down the hallway, feeling as if he was going to explode.

Opening the door to the bathroom, he dashed inside to relieve himself of the seven bottles of water he had drunk earlier to get rid of the spiciness of the Nasty Sauce.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Coming down from the stairs, Danny walked into the kitchen, where he could see his sister already sipping on a steaming mug of cocoa at the table. She slid a mug in his direction.

"Thanks," he said. "It's a good thing that the heater's up and running, though." He took a long gulp from his mug.

Jazz laughed lightly. "Yeah, but the cocoa's good, too."

Danny finished drinking. "I agree. This stuff's pretty good!"

"Thanks," she said. "You can find some really interesting things in magazines these days." She held up the copy she was reading at the hospital.

Both laughed at the same time. Then both sighed.

Jazz stared off in another direction thinking about something, but Danny's eyes remained on his sister. There was something he had to know. It wasn't life-threatening, but there was something that he had to clarify.

"Jazz?" he asked.

"Huh?" she responded, shifting into his direction.

"I want you to be completely honest with me. Was there ever a time where you liked Valerie?"

Jazz looked down on her mug and frowned a bit. "In the beginning, I would have to stamp that question with a no. At first, when she was rich, I thought she was extremely self-centered. She cared about her looks way too much, and to tell the truth, I couldn't stand her. Then came the accident at her dad's work. I must admit that some of that resentment I had kind of dissipated a bit. I agree that no one had to go through what she went through."

_"And the fact that I'm somewhat responsible for all that makes me feel a little worse,"_ thought Danny.

"When it was revealed in the nurse's office that you were her friend, I kind of admired you, because you took a bold step into allowing more people into your circle. But then I had to factor in the fact that she was a ghost hunter bent out to destroy you, and that admiration was sort of shot down a bit."

"And this dislike towards her came around again once you found out about her ghost-fighting?" asked Danny, sipping more cocoa.

"No, that's not the point at all," said Jazz. "When I heard Sam talking to you in the nurse's office that same day talking about Valerie's intentions, I agreed with her. It's no longer Valerie herself that I have trouble with, but it's her intentions that make this whole thing risky. If it were simple, it's like what mom says about letting bygones be bygones - you could have been her first friend after being on the road of shallowness."

"Basically, you're saying that if Valerie wasn't bent on destroying ghosts, then you'd probably approve a little bit?" asked Danny.

"Well, I'm not saying that my answer is still no, due to the fact that she used to be like Paulina and all those other girls, but at least without something like that I would have had some time to think about it," she stated.

"Then what Sam was saying before was right," said Danny, thinking into the past. "She said that if I could somehow talk her out of ghost fighting, then she would at least attempt to tolerate it." Suddenly he stopped, and stared at the ground. "But that means..."

"That means what?" asked Jazz.

"The only way I can do this is through one method," he said.

"What method?" asked Jazz.

A silence followed the room. Once again, it was so silent that the only thing heard was the ticking of a clock. There wasn't even a breath of wind trying to enter the house, though it was snowing outside.

Danny took his eyes away from the ground and looked directly at his sister as the answer came out in a sotto tone.

"I have to go ghost while I'm in front of her, or vice versa."

Whatever he was going to say next, she wasn't expecting anything like that. Jazz got up from her chair in a tumultuous fashion, nearly spilling cocoa everywhere.

"You can't do something like that!" said Jazz. "It's suicide!"

"I know," said Danny. "But today, I kind of saw the Valerie that you guys saw all along. I don't think something like this will be anytime soon. Something like that is a crazy idea. I'll bite my tongue for that."

"What do you mean, 'the Valerie we saw all along'?" asked Jazz.

He knew it would come sooner or later. Sighing, and staring back at the ground, he spoke.

"I'm kind of the one responsible for this. Everything that happened to Valerie."

Jazz spoke skeptically. "You? What did you have to do with Valerie?"

Danny talked about the incident with the ghost dog. There seemed to be another pain that resided in his stomach as he detailed his confessions.

When he finished, Jazz's eyes were open wide. "You did some of this? No _wonder_ she hates you so much! You were the one who helped in all of this! In fact, you were the one who started her craze for ghost hunting!"

"I know," said Danny, guiltily. "That's how it all started, her ghost hunting. It's killing me every single day, knowing that the reason she hates me is because I did this to her."

Danny looked down at the ground, ashamed. His contribution really proved to be so much in the ways of Valerie's hatred.

His sister, however, saw it another way, as she walked up to him.

"But it wasn't your fault," said Jazz. "If you think about it another way, she also kind of contributed to her own hatred."

"What?" said Danny, looking up. "I don't get it."

"No matter how you see it, Danny, she never gave you a chance to explain yourself. She jumped to conclusions."

_"Well, she's got a point there," _he thought.

"But I had this thing with Valerie," said Danny. "I don't know how to explain it, but a couple of days before the Pariah Dark incident, there was this little connection...now that she was down to my level, I just felt that I had to do something about it...find some way to say that I was sorry without explaining the whole thing...but she kind of did that herself...when she asked me if she wanted to compare book reports..."

Jazz started to see how everything fit together. "So what you're saying is that this friendship was kind of a way to relieve yourself of some of the guilt you've been holding?"

A fuse went off in Danny's head, as he found himself nodding.

That was the answer...

_The answer!_

He was ecstatic that he had found it, but also a little irritated. How could he not see that coming? It took his sister to figure that out?

"Now I'm a bit proud of you," said Jazz. "You're been trying to do the right thing, to try and set things right..."

But then he realized that guilt was merely half the answer...the fireworks show in his head died down a bit as he continued speaking.

"But I also really did feel this connection...she helped me get rid of Dash that one time, and then she complemented me a few times...she seemed to be there a lot, and I kind of enjoyed her company..."

He paused. Then another horrifying realization came to his head.

Perhaps it was true...maybe there was more than just a friendship...maybe there was...

Jazz seemed to be reading his mind. "That meant you kind of liked her, did you?"

To some extent, that answer had a mild yes. Danny nodded.

"But what about Sam?" asked Jazz, now starting to sail into dangerous waters. "Your best friend?"

His mind went to work again. That was true...what _about_ Sam?

They never spoke about it, but it was clearly there...Sam could never bring herself to talk about her feelings when it came to this topic, but she definitely showed signs...

Especially when Paulina was overshadowed by Kitty.

But then, he also liked Paulina...which led into the reasons for liking her...

His head bearing the weight of those three people took their toll as it pressured into his mind about having to end up making a choice in the end.

Danny couldn't think any longer. He turned away from his sister and spoke in the same tone he used when he blew up at Valerie.

"This is EXACTLY my point!" he screamed. "The problem with me is that I don't have the ability to make a choice! Everyone gets affected by it, and everyone, most of time, ends up losing, or drawn away from me! Now that I've had that talk with Valerie in the hospital, she now hates me, and probably hates my ghost side even more!"

"Did you have a choice of whether or not to blow up at Valerie?" asked Jazz.

"Well, she mentioned that Sam was a goth geek, and that kind of fired me up," said Danny.

"Then you made a choice right there," said Jazz. "You came in defense of Sam, and whether or not Valerie liked it, you were the one who left the room."

"What else could I have done?" asked Danny.

"You could have stayed!" yelled Jazz. "You could have taken the other path and shrugged off the insult, but you decided to sacrifice all of that for Sam."

Once again, Danny could only blink as he took her words into account.

Perhaps he _did_ like Sam...

Jazz viewed her brother, who was deep in thought. "You see, Danny? Our choices make us who we are. You do have the abilities to make these choices, whether or not you're conscious about them. You remember about what Sam said earlier, making a decision? She's right."

She paused to make sure he was still listening. He was.

"Look, I don't know what to think about Valerie anymore. But you blowing up at her, knowing that she's a ghost hunter, with intentions to get rid of you? That's the type of choice that you should really be focused about."

After hearing that statement, he froze.

So he had made the wrong decision...yelling at Valerie...he knew that he was going to regret this.

Immensely.

He should have dealt with it in a better way than yelling at her, even if it was for Sam...

Instead, he had just lit a fuse that could lead to the biggest explosion he had ever seen...and people were in the way of the destructive path...

Valerie could be thinking anything right now...his fears started growing...

And worse...no one knew about it but himself...even Jazz was oblivious to the amount of danger she was potentially in.

Her next line confirmed everything. "Please don't do something like that in the future, Danny," she said. "It only takes one choice that leads us down a destructive path."

She hugged him.

Danny tried to return it, but his fears kept him from doing so. Her words were basically echoing what he was thinking, and this moment was just like with Sam in the nurse's office. If he returned the hug, he might not be able to let go. It would have been too much for him to handle.

"You look tired," said Jazz. "You've had a long day. Maybe you should sleep right now."

He should tell her. Warn her that danger was near.

But she could get scared for his life, and then stop him from going.

Something like that couldn't happen. These battles were his own responsibilities, whether or not it was a ghost after him, or a person. He had to protect Amity Park, prove he wasn't a villain.

Remaining silent, he yawned and said, "Yeah, I guess you're right. Mom and Dad can come home to a sleeping house."

His sister laughed lightly. "Oh, Danny, I hope you never change."

As he climbed the stairs with his sister, he thought about that.

Change...he might have to, if it involved protecting his family...

Before they separated paths to go into their rooms, Jazz had one last thing to say.

"Danny?" she asked.

He peered from behind his door. "Yeah?" he asked.

"I was just thinking...I actually do have an opinion on Valerie."

"What's that?"

"Though I have an unfavorable opinion, I realized that I can't always make your decisions. So I'll do my best to cope with whatever you have to do. You call the shots."

Danny wanted to say that he now had an unfavorable opinion on Valerie, but that would also mean explaining that she could be in danger. He only nodded.

"Are you sure you don't have anything else to say to me?" asked Jazz.

_"I care about you, Jazz, so be careful,"_ he wanted to say. But instead, he shook his head.

"OK," she said, before she closed the door. "I love you. Good night."

_I love you_...those three haunting words. He hoped that it wouldn't be the last time he would have to hear that coming from his sister.

He closed the door, quickly dressed into his PJs, and turned out the lights. The only illumination in the room was now the soft glow of the moonlight.

It had been a long day. He went through many different emotions, from happiness with his friends, anger at the hospital, and fear just now.

He really did have choices...and he had made choices to avoid Valerie, get angry at her, and blow up at her...but now those choices could come back and smack him in the face...

What was going to happen now?

Once again, he didn't know, as drowsiness got the better of him as he lay in his bed...the misery of the choices fading into his mind...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was sometime during the night, but he had no clue what time it was. He assumed it was around 2:00 in the morning, due to the fact that it was nearly pitch dark.

It was raining too, and he was walking through grass. He had no idea where he was. He was freezing cold, and he had no jacket. The rain continued pouring down on him, wetting his entire body as he tried his best to combat the cold air.

He begged for a light source, just to see where he was...he was blindly moving in some random direction with some unknown purpose, with extremely dim light. He could only see about some six inches in front of his face.

A murder of crows cawed above him, in some twisted tree that he could barely see against the almost nonexistent moonlight. He was starting to have uneasiness about where he currently was...

As he continued walking for a couple of yards, he tripped over something. Falling to the grass, he bruised his knee. And at the same time, his hand also hit the ground, but it didn't hit grass. Instead, it slapped into something slick and wet. It was very smooth...some kind of rock jutting out of the ground...

Curiosity got the better of him as he traced the outlines. In doing so, he came upon something unique. It had some type of carved picture on it, with letters. Squinting closely towards it, he saw the ever-recognizable features of an angel...along with three letters.

R.I.P.

It was a gravestone.

He searched around for the thing that tripped him. His fingers touched the familiar half dome shape that resembled a flat rock sticking out of the ground...

Another gravestone.

It was a graveyard...

He was walking through a graveyard?

That familiar fear started creeping down his spine once again as he started to panic.

What was he doing here? Why was he here?

He didn't want to be here...he wanted to leave...

He started running in the same direction he was going, trying to find some sort of exit. Perhaps that was why he was walking in that direction...he was trying to find some way out. But the graveyard seemed to be of infinite size...there was no way out. The further he seemed to run, the more he continued to see graves and crosses. They seemed to be getting bigger.

If there was any point of fear above panic, Danny was feeling that emotion as he continued running through the infinite graveyard. He just kept running faster, not caring where he'd end up, not caring if the rain would make him slip and fall...

This was exactly what happened. Slipping over a flat gravestone, he fell to the ground once again, his back crashing into the stone that he had slipped upon.

The rain was pouring into his face. As he lay there face up, looking at the sky, he wished that there was some way that the rain would stop.

As soon as that thought passed through his head, however, the rain stopped.

The moon shone brighter, now shining from behind the clouds that once shielded it.

_"What the hell?"_ he thought. _"What are the odds of that happening?"_

As he got up from the ground, he began to see the reason.

The moonlight shone it such a way through a tree that it branched into several different rays of light, resembling shafts. There were three, in fact, as those three shafts of light happened to converge on one spot on the ground that caused Danny's stomach to churn unpleasantly.

The shafts were hitting one lone grave.

And that grave was covered in mud, preventing him from seeing its owner.

He didn't know what was happening to him, but though he wanted to stay where he was, some force attracted him to the grave, making him walk towards it. Fear tugged at his back as he literally felt his hair stand on end...

Danny stopped in front of it. For a moment, he just stood there, staring at the mud-covered grave. It looked brand new...like it had been a recent burial, due to the evidence of non-erosion. Something strange settled in his mind...something that wanted him to find things out...

He knelt by the stone and started wiping off the mud, working his way from the right...

Danny revealed the letter N.

_"Stop it!" _screamed one half of his mind. _"Don't reveal it!"_

He paid no attention as he revealed the next letter...

It was an O...

Danny suddenly stopped...at the moment, he only thought of several names that ended with those two letters.

_"No,"_ he said, softly. Then it progressed to a higher pitch, more emotion building behind it...

"No..."

He clutched his throbbing head...the graveyard started to spin around him like he was hallucinating. No, this whole thing was a hallucination...

Some large weight in him lifted as he yelled out the same word one last time...

_"NOOO!"_

But as he said that...another thing came out other than his cry...

His ghostly wail...

Erupting from his mouth...it destroyed everything in its path, taking graves and trees with it...

This included the grave he was about to uncover.

The power was too much for him...he was about to pass out...

The wail ended, leaving a weak Danny gasping for breath on his knees.

He glanced around in horror at the damage that had been created. Disturbing grounds of rest and destroying gravestones..._What had he done?_

More questions built up in his head as he futilely searched for an answer as to what happened...

How did he summon up his ghostly wail without going ghost in the first place? Whose grave was he about to see?

And more importantly, _Why was he here?_

Once again, neither question was answered as the ground below him shook violently. Trying to stand, he leaned against a stone that was out of range of his destructive wail.

_"What's going on?"_ he thought.

The ground suddenly split apart, emitting brilliant rays of green light.

He watched in frozen terror as he saw something lurking in the light, some spirit that started flowing up to the surface...

The ghost's features were starting to become visible...but once again, the face was cloaked with some strange black cloth...

The mystery ghost spoke in a booming voice.

**_"How dare you defile my grave!"_** it said, shooting a ghost ray directly at him.

Danny was so terrified that he didn't bother moving out of the way. The attack hit him square on in the face as he was thrown back against something. To his horror, it was something black...and it had hands.

It was Spectra.

She said nothing to him...she only smiled. As he struggled to get free, he found himself glowing green as she started absorbing his misery. Going ghost wasn't going to work...as she turned into a young woman...

And her power...she must have absorbed so much misery that she was almost unstoppable...he could barely move in her death-like grip.

Spectra spoke to him. "Always thought I'd get you in some place like this," she said. "What better place to absorb misery than a graveyard?"

Danny glared at her in anger. But that was all he could do.

"Let go of me!" he yelled. "Now!"

Spectra smiled a bit, then said, "Fine."

_"Fine? Since when did she become so agreeable?"_

When she continued smiling, however, he looked behind him to see what she was so happy about.

The ghost from the grave was right behind him.

Spectra yelled. "It's him! He's the one that betrayed you! He's the one that destroyed your grave!"

Bright red and glowing eyes started flashing from behind the black veil.

Before Danny knew what was happening, the Spectral ghost behind him yelled out one last thing. "FINISH HIM!" she yelled.

And the ghost started charging Danny.

And with all the emotions seeming to weigh him down, it seemed like he had an inability to move...

He made no effort to get out of the way...he stood there, as time slowed to a standstill...it let him think about all the things he had just done...

The force of her speed caused a draft to blow, unfurling his hair...she was getting closer and closer...

Danny blinked his eyes, preparing for the end...tears welling up in them...

_"What have I done?"_ he thought, awaiting the charge. _"What have I done?"_

The ghost's eyes...they were the last thing he saw before time shifted back to normal...

Along with some strange light...

It was the sun...

But the sun was speaking...yelling something at him

_"Danny! Wake up! You're dreaming!"_

He squinted closer into the blinding light...the sun soon turned into a face...

And it had eyes that resembled the eyes of his attacker.

Danny's vision got clearer and clearer as the last traces of sleep escaped his eyes. His mind slowly transformed the surroundings of a graveyard to that of his own room.

When everything settled back into place, the face suddenly became clear.

If it were in any other circumstance, he would have been glad to see her. But Danny's panicking heart was beating at 100 miles per hour as he glanced in horror at the smiling person that was currently staring at him.

"You're finally up! Geez, it took you a while...didn't you remember that we were supposed to hang out today?"

It was Sam.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_A/N: Yeah, I know...but review, please._


	9. Ice Breaker

_A/N: Merry Christmas Eve, everyone! Dang, this year went by quickly, but I personally can't wait for the new year to arrive. For all my readers out there, thank you for those who reviewed. All I can ask is that you continue these great reviews...that would be a great wish I hope that is answered._

_Warning, this chapter contains a bit of D x S._

_But here it is...my gift for you this Christmas Eve...Chapter 9!_

_**Chapter 9 - Ice Breaker**_

"Danny?" Sam asked again, when he failed to move. "Are you OK?"

He wasn't sure himself if he could answer that question...

Though he was glad it was all over, there was something strange going on...no one had touched the thermostat, so it was still over eighty degrees in his room...

So why was he freezing cold? He was shivering...

As Danny kept trying to force all the broken links together, he continued looking at Sam, who now wore a look of suspicion.

"Danny?" she repeated again. "Are you all right? You look like you've seen a ghost!"

"Well, considering that he's half of that description, I wouldn't doubt it," said another voice in the room. Danny peered over the side of Sam's head and saw the owner of the voice, which was Tucker, shooting out a joke.

Sam laughed. "OK, Tucker, stop it, seriously..." She turned back to look at Danny. "Are you OK? You look awfully pale. What kind of dream was that? You held perfectly still for some reason..."

Her face suddenly changed from a slight happiness to come concern. "You didn't have another of those...premonitions, did you? Or was it just some weird dream?"

Glad that his wish had been answered, Danny quickly took the other road out. "Yes," he said. "just some strange dream about Skulker."

"Skulker?" asked Tucker aloud, now coming towards Danny. "You're not having any problems with that guy, are you?"

"No," said Danny, quickly. "You know how things are these days with these dreams...I never know what's going to happen."

He was greatly, and secretly, wishing that they would change the subject...especially in Sam's case.

So it was quite unfortunate when Sam asked, "You're not lying to us, are you? Remember, Danny, you can tell us anything...we've been keeping your secret for all this time, you know."

"Yeah, dude," said Tucker. "You can tell us."

Danny was trying to erase the look of disbelief on his face. As much as he wanted to mention the new dream, he knew that it wasn't the best idea...Jazz could understand why, since she was his sister, but he wasn't sure how friends would react...they were the ones who talked to Jazz in the first place...

"I'm not lying," said Danny. "There's nothing to worry about." As soon as that left his mouth, however, there was a part of him that was already regretting the line.

She gave him a slight smile, as though she was expecting him to say that. But it seemed nevertheless, that they were the words that he was going to say. "OK," said Sam, ruffling Danny's already unruly hair.

But as she did that, she noticed something odd...though it was eighty degrees in his room, Danny's hair was really cold...cold as ice, actually...

...and dare she mention it, slightly _wet_?

She was about to mention it out loud, but then reneged...

Danny was her best friend, after all. She knew, from watching him, that he might be holding something back...his facial expressions told it all. But she also knew his temper...if she kept harping on something, he would get defensive. He'd already been through enough, after she was able to break through to him about Valerie.

And it was even better for an outsider to know that she had no idea about his visit to Valerie at the hospital...he _had_ been through enough.

_"I'll ask later,"_ she thought.

"Hey, man," said Tucker. "Sorry we came up here to your room, but when you never showed up, we kind of got worried. Good thing to see that you just slept in."

Danny slightly smiled at the comment as he gazed at the clock, which read 11:20.

Geez...if they were this way if was late twenty minutes, he wondered how they would be if he was late by an hour. But best friends, after all, do look out for each other.

Yet another reason to not tell them about his dream...to look out for their well-being...

...right?

As he searched for some answer to that tough one-word question, Sam interrupted his train of thought again.

"Well, we'll leave so you can get dressed," said Sam, starting out the door, pulling Tucker with her. "After that, we'll head straight for the mall."

"I still have to do some shopping for my Secret Santa," said Tucker. "Or since I already mentioned it, Dash. I guess I'll just get him that assortment of balls I saw at the sporting goods store..."

"Yeah," said Sam, putting on what looked like a spy coat and a pair of sunglasses. "If I'm going to get Paulina that sweater, then I'm not going to be seen in that store out in the open."

Danny internally laughed at her disguise..._"Same old Sam," _he thought, as he closed the door to change.

But it was true...Sam's individuality was the thing that kind of led them to be friends in the first place...she was a cool person to have around...

But time and time again, there was always that strange thing going around school that they were together. They were best friends, sure, but they weren't together. He remembered the time with Ember where basically everyone was thinking along those lines...

However, the feelings he mentioned from earlier...they were starting to grow. After the nurse's office, it seemed that they were stronger than before...

Maybe this Christmas, rather than the one last year where everything was almost wrecked, he would live up to his promise about being better about it...perhaps he could tell some things he had been suppressing for quite a while...

He was a little scared, though. With all the current problems he had, it was going to be difficult...

And as he changed into his pants, it seemed that the difficulty had increased...

There was a giant bruise on his knee.

Many thoughts passed through his head trying to come up with an answer, but there was only one possible answer.

The dream...tripping over the gravestone...

That familiar creeping chill went down his spine once again.

Were his dreams suddenly turning into reality?

And Spectra...was she...?

_"No, wait, back up!"_

He had to get a hold of himself...thinking something like that was downright ridiculous...dreams can't hurt you...he probably had that bruise for a while...

...yeah...that seemed perfectly logical...

Danny knew, as he pulled on his shirt, that he couldn't go on like this. There was a breaking point for everyone...even he was starting to lose his cool...thinking up impossible things and suddenly coming to outrageous conclusions...

Hell, look at the way he handled Valerie at the hospital...and plus, he never told his friends about it yet...it was eating away at him, watching them completely oblivious to all the events he was currently holding back...

_"These are your best friends," _he thought. _"Do you think that they'll suddenly turn on you?"_

Good point.

But still, now wasn't a good time. They were hanging out today...burdening them with news like this would be rather drastic...

He would tell them...eventually...

As he walked out the door to meet them, he hoped that there would be enough time...both for his confessions and about Sam...

Because unbeknownst to him, it was running out...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_Amity Park Mall_

"Santa Claus exists!" yelled Jack Fenton through a speakerphone. "He delivers presents to all children around the world at a lightning fast speed! That's why no one could see him!"

"He's a fake!" yelled Maddie, on the same stage. "Science has proved that someone traveling at that speed will burn up and shrivel into dust within seconds!"

"He has a shield around him!" yelled Jack.

"Well, Mr. Know-it-All, what is this shield made of?" she asked.

A silence, as he tried to come up with an answer to that question with a group of kids waiting for him to come up with an answer.

He had been watching them for about five minutes.

_"Same old argument,"_ thought Danny, watching them. But at least he found himself smiling and laughing this year at their expense. He knew that his parents had this same argument every single year...and last year his anger was at a boiling point.

It was kind of funny that it took a ghost writer to finally let him see beyond his own problems...and allow others to celebrate in their own fashion. He had finally learned to live with it.

But the same dilemma plagued his current situation. If he can do this for Christmas, why can't he do this for the rest of his life?

"Danny!" yelled a voice.

He turned around, to see that Sam had emerged from the store with Paulina's sweater.

"UGH!" she said. "That store...I think this time they might have found out who I was..."

Danny laughed. "You were in that store before?"

"Yeah," said Sam, sounding a bit ashamed. "I was getting something in there for my mom once." She shuddered at the mere thought of it.

He gave her a pat on the back. "Well, at least it's over, isn't it?" he asked.

"I guess so," said Sam, taking off the spy coat. "It'll probably be another year before I have to set foot in that store again, heaven forbid."

She was waiting for the usual mood that Danny showed around the holidays along with a one word answer, but she got a surprising result.

He was laughing...

"Oh, man, Sam!" he said, between laughs. "Oh boy, that was funny...dang, I hope you never change..."

Sam was completely caught off guard by that remark as one thought went through her head.

_"Danny, laughing?"_ she thought. _"During Christmas?"_

There was _definitely_ a change in him from last year...

She had always seen him skulking in some corner during the holidays in the mall, and she had grown accustomed to it. Now he was laughing, and even joking about it?

At first she was a little afraid of it. This definitely wasn't something she was expecting.

But as his laughter continued, she slowly found herself enjoying it.

Watching Danny laugh was something rare..._very_ rare. But when he was, she didn't know how to describe it...he just seemed to liven up the area, along with others around him. It was sort of...enjoyable...

And soon she didn't know how, but then she found herself joining in.

Danny wiped a tear from his eye. "Sorry," he said, his laughter dying down a bit, his voice slowly returning back to his usual solemnity. "Don't know what came over me."

"No," said Sam. "That's OK; I...kind of liked it..."

Danny's ears perked up. "What did you say?"

Sam suddenly realized the mistake coming from her mouth and tried to cover it a bit.

"Oh, I didn't mean that...I meant that it was a while that I heard you laugh...and it was kind of funny watching you, so kind of joined in..."

_"Crap!" _she thought, her head going down, closing both eyes. That was exactly what she meant!

Opening one eye, and looking at him, she waited for the second reaction to her second slip-up.

He smiled slightly. "I don't laugh a lot?" he asked, his head slightly askew, trying to look at her in the eye.

It was as if she lost some control over her words. "You don't. You're always so serious...I mean, when you lighten up once in a while, that's when you seem to be...be..."

"What?" asked Danny, coming closer.

She looked from the ground and directly at him. To her surprise, he was at a pretty close range.

"I don't want to say it," she said. "You'll probably laugh or something."

"My laughing has everything to do with this!" he said. "What were you going to say?"

Sam looked back at him, and saw that he wasn't going to back down. She didn't like the way that he always had to get to the bottom of things.

_"I can't believe I'm saying this..."_ she thought, as the phrase passed out of her mouth.

"You seem to be a person that I really like to have around," she said, quickly, turning around, facing the other direction. At the same time, her cheeks reddened a bit.

Danny's did the same.

"But we're friends," he said. "I didn't know that there were times you didn't like having me around."

"No," said Sam, turning around. "I like having you around...that is the reason why we're friends, why you're my _best_ friend...but I...I don't...I...want...I mean, I feel..."

She was really struggling with her words. Danny knew exactly how that felt when he was at a loss.

"Sometimes," she said, "after what everyone thinks...after all that has happened, I feel that you...that I...I..."

Whatever it was, she was having a hell of a time saying it. But Danny felt as if he knew exactly what she was going to say.

He wished that he could say something, too, but it seemed that he was also tongue-tied. It was a really awkward moment.

But he found himself walking up to her, and putting his hand on her shoulder. The gesture was a bit surprising to Sam, as she looked up the length of his arm and into his face, which was smiling a bit.

Sam had the oddest feeling coming over her as she found herself returning the smile. But the other odd anomaly was when she looked back at his hand, which was firmly rooted on her shoulder.

His hand was warm...which was strange, when the fact about his head being cold when she ruffled his hair that morning.

Danny didn't know what was happening. It was some invisible magnetic force that slowly drew him towards her, his hand still clasped onto her shoulder...and Sam didn't seem to be moving away from him...

In fact, she was moving towards him...he could almost see his reflection in her violet eyes...his parents' argument about Santa Claus in the background seemed to be fading away, as his head slowly tilted...

As his eyes slowly closed, his last remnants of sight witnessed Sam doing the same thing...

"Hey guys!" yelled a voice out of nowhere. "Did you miss me? What's up?"

Danny's eyes shot open at the realization of what was happening. His eyes locked with Sam's, who had the same look of panic on her face.

"Whoa," said Tucker, as he looked more closely at his two friends. "Did I come at a bad time?" His voice was slightly on the preppy tone, and he was thinking, _"It's about time!"_

Danny, panicking, and trying to come up with some good excuse, suddenly brought his hands up to Sam's eyes, and started inspecting them like a doctor.

"Ouch!" she said, quietly.

"What are you two doing?" asked Tucker, now coming up to them with a broad, sarcastic smile on his face.

"There was something in Sam's eye," said Danny quickly, still pretending to inspect it. "She asked me to see if there was anything inside of it."

"Something in Sam's eye, huh?" asked Tucker, his smile still unfazed. "Yeah, sure, whatever _you say,_ Danny."

"No!" said Sam, pulling away from Danny, by this time her eyelid painful. "There was something in my eye! I swear!"

"_Uh-huh_," said Tucker, not believing any word of it. "I might as well go back to the sporting goods store to get Dash some more things..."

"Go ahead," said Danny, desperately trying to get off-topic. "I'll go get my Secret Santa something,"

"Sure," said Tucker. "And I'll rent a room for you two lovebirds,"

_"WE'RE NOT LOVEBIRDS!" _yelled Danny and Sam at the top of their lungs.

"OK, OK," said Tucker, backing off. "Geez, I was just joking...can't you two ever take a joke?"

Danny's nerves finally went back down as he slowly consoled his other best friend. "Sorry, Tuck," he said. "I should know by now that yelling doesn't solve anything." His memory suddenly switched to Valerie's as he quickly threw that event out of his head.

"No prob, man," said Tucker, offering his fist that Danny could punch against in friendship. "Just giving you a hard time, as usual..."

The half-ghost laughed. _"Same old Tuck..."_ he thought, repeating the phrase once again with a different name. He headed off in another direction to buy his remaining gift. He had gotten everyone on his list, except for one...his Secret Santa.

"See you guys in a second!" he said, disappearing into a department store, with absolutely no idea what he was going to get...minutes passed by, and he still had no clue...

That is, until his eyes rested on something...

"Perfect!" he said, buying it. He knew that the person was going to like it.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It wasn't easy, but Danny flew them all back to his place, carrying his friends and all the merchandise from the mall.

"Dang, it's cold up there!" said Tucker, rubbing his hands together. "At least you were able to get us home quickly!"

"I know," said Sam. "Is it just me, or are you getting faster?"

"Don't know," said Danny, still in ghost mode and looking towards the heavens. "Maybe that cold air up there is just making me faster for some reason...I have no clue..."

Sam walked up behind him and touched his shoulder. "Well, whatever it is, keep it up," said Sam. "You're probably gonna need it for later, if you know what I mean..."

"Spectra?" asked Danny, changing back into human form, and looking at her.

"Yes!" she said. "We haven't heard from her in a while! Who knows what she's up to now?"

The teen's face suddenly changed to a bit of anguish as he considered his rough dilemma.

_"I wish I could tell you,"_ he thought. Danny looked down at the ground, slightly crestfallen...he had to tell her...

"Are you OK, Danny?" asked Sam, noticing the sudden change in her friend. "Is there something wrong?"

"Yeah," he said, still looking down. "But I don't know what it is...I just keep having this strange feeling that something is going to happen sometime soon..."

"But you'll get rid of her!" said Tucker. "You always have done things like that in the past...she shouldn't be any different..."

"But this _is _different," said Danny, feeling that now was the time. "She's now starting to specifically target people, especially ones like Val-"

_"Who _shouldn't be any different?" asked a voice from the Fentonworks door. It was Jazz.

"Oh, no one," said Danny, changing the subject quickly. "Just thinking about random things, as usual." Telling Sam the truth would also involve telling Jazz. And both were somehow involved...

Danny watched with a disguised look on his face as he watched his sister and Tucker laugh at the same time.

Only one person watched the whole thing without showing a bit of emotion. Sam was a little upset that Danny never finished, but for some reason, couldn't find the nerve to be angry at him...

_"Just another thing to get out of him later,"_ she thought as she smiled and looked up at the sky.

"Look!" she exclaimed, laughing a bit. "Snow!"

Everyone looked up. Indeed, snow was falling, and it was coming down quickly. It was sort of like magic.

Three of the teenagers started acting like little kids again, having a little snowball fight. Jazz, Sam, and Tucker were laughing as they dodged each other, trying to avoid each others' throws. Danny just remained solemn, staring at his friends and sister with a smile on his face. Just watching their reactions was enough for him.

After a while, Jazz motioned them all inside, not after getting hit with a snowball. "C'mon," she said. "Hot cocoa all around. We can hang out inside until the snow stops a bit..."

"I'm up for it," said Tucker, racing inside, already cold.

Danny was about to ask Sam if she was up for it, but never got the chance to as a ball of white snow smacked into his chest. Sam laughed in triumph, knowing that she had hit her target.

"Oh, you're dead!" said Danny playfully, now scooping up some snow and throwing the snowballs at Sam. She laughed as she countered his attacks with some of their own, dodging and weaving.

Jazz and Tucker just watched and looked at each other with grins as they witnessed the "fighting" pair, as Danny got smacked in the face with a snowball and he chased after her in a rage of fury.

"Hey, no fair!" yelled Sam when he turned invisible.

She waited for a few seconds in suspense, and got her answer when two snowballs suddenly smacked her, one in the face and another in the arm.

"I'll get you!" she yelled, throwing snow everywhere, hoping that some would land on him and form an outline.

When she succeeded, she threw a ball at what looked like the back of his head.

"Ow!" he yelled, rubbing his head and becoming visible once again.

Then it became something that resembled a food fight, where they didn't even bother making the snowballs. They each just pushed as much snow as they could onto each other, laughing the whole time.

"OK, that's enough," said Jazz, when both were almost completely saturated. "You two can stop that fight of yours!"

"Hey!" said Danny, still in competitive mode. "She started it!"

"Well, you were the cheater that turned invisible!" countered Sam, on the same lines.

Danny laughed. "Well, you deserved it!"

"I did not!" protested Sam.

"Seriously," said Tucker. "You two act like a couple sometimes..."

"We're not together!" they both protested, taking their eyes off each other and rounding back on Tucker.

Jazz just laughed at them as she closed the door on the empty street.

And it stayed empty and quiet on the snow-covered street for a while, until one thing made its presence...one thing that had been watching the events from up above, well out of sight.

Well hidden in the now-densely falling snow, a black spirit became visible, a large smile on her face.

"How touching!" said Spectra, now changing into a young female from all the absorbed misery. "A half-ghost playing with his little friends...that's so sweet...it's just too bad that I'll have to end that..."

She was still planning her revenge after what Danny had done to her assistant. Getting Valerie in on it was part of her plan the whole time, because she knew of her capabilities, _and_ her friendship with Danny...

And after what she had witnessed, it was clear that there were others to get a hold of...

_"Soon, Danny," _she thought, turning invisible. _"That waterfall of misery will be mine for the taking!"_

Laughing, she disappeared out of sight to look for more tell-tale signs on teenagers.

_A/N: Reviews, please, and let there be many! And once again, Merry Christmas._


	10. The Calm Before the Storm

_**Chapter 10 - The Calm Before the Storm**_

_A/N: Hey, people...I know it's no longer Christmas, but there's only ONE working computer in the house connected to the internet, and I haven't have a chance to touch this computer recently because, well, you know the story..._

_OK, I'll stop right there...the long-awaited chapter 10!_

_---Fenton household---_

It was Friday morning, the final day of the school year before everyone left for Winter Break. With soft snow falling over the area, it was a perfect setting for a picturesque vision of a town getting ready for Christmas.

But at the same time, it seemed that there was some cloud of misery over some of the kids of Amity Park...their parents had no idea what was wrong with them...they figured it was probably just stress.

That was only half of it, however, when it wasn't known that there was a certain ghost involved...

But an unaffected brother and sister knew almost nothing about it. They were sitting at the kitchen table, eating breakfast. She was in her usual spirits, talking with some friends on the phone, while he was sitting quietly, thinking about something.

"Huh? Yeah, that sounds cool...OK, you bet! ...No, there isn't any need to thank me...yeah...no problem...OK, we can hang out later today once we're out of school for two weeks...yeah, I can't believe it, either! All right...well, see you later in class...bye!" She hung up.

"This is so great!" she said out loud. "Danny, aren't you excited that we're about to get a vacation off from school?"

She waited for a reply...and waited...

Danny didn't say a word. But he was absent-mindedly stirring his cereal, staring off into space.

"Danny?" she asked. "HEY! Danny!"

He was caught off guard by the word "hey" so much that he panicked. At the same time, the spoon flew out of his hand, crashing into a wall. Looking around in alarm, he saw that his sister was staring at him.

"Oh," he said. "Yes, I'm fine. How are you doing?"

"That's not what I said," she stated.

His facial expression screwed up in concentration as he tried again. "Uhh...good morning to you, too?"

"No," she said, laughing. "Geez, Danny, sometimes you have the attention span of a goldfish!"

He wanted to say something in return, but decided not to. "I'm sorry," he said. "I guess I'm a little tired this morning..."

"What happened to you?" asked Jazz. "Late night?"

"Something like that," he said. "I had to study for the Astrology final for today...and I also had a ton of homework to do..."

_"That's my brother," _thought Jazz. _"The greatest procrastinator on Earth..."_

"Plus, I couldn't get a hold of her..."

Jazz's train of thought was cut short when she heard the word "her."

"Wait a minute," she said, her eyes blinking wildly. "What was that?"

Danny slightly smiled. "I've been thinking about what you said, and you're right - things between Valerie and me should not have gotten to these heights..."

Now it was Jazz's turn to smirk. "You've been trying to talk to her, haven't you?"

Danny nodded. "When she came back to school on Wednesday, I've been trying to talk to her...but she's been giving me the cold shoulder lately...yes, I know, some of this is my fault..."

"And since you also mentioned your ghost half told you these lies, I wouldn't doubt it," she said. But then she crossed over to him and gave him a slight pat on the shoulder. "But I'm proud of you, Danny...you're actually trying to fix the problem yourself..."

He smiled sadly. "Thank you...but what am I going to do? She won't talk to me at all!"

Jazz pushed the phone in front of him. "Why don't you try calling her?"

"I attempted to get a hold of her six times last night, and no one ever answered," he said.

"Did you leave any message?" she asked. "They might not have been home...I mean, her father works as a night watchman and she...well, she...she might have been ghost hunting..."

"But...what if she hangs up on me?" he asked.

"C'mon, Danny," said Jazz. "You can do this." She pushed the cordless phone into his hands.

For a minute, he just stood there helpless, not knowing what to do...but then...

_"I have to do it,"_ he thought. _"If I don't, things will be a lot worse!"_

The irony of it all was that everything _was_ a lot worse...but he still had to do it.

With his sister watching, he dialed her number, praying she would be home. Jazz left the room so he could talk alone...she really did know how this was like for him. He smiled after her as he pressed the last digit on the button.

_---Gray household---_

Valerie was alone in the house, finishing her last remnants of breakfast before she walked out the door.

Two days had passed since she came back from the hospital...and once again, it seemed that no one cared that she was there. The hospital said that she probably wouldn't have been back until Christmas Eve, but once again, she showed that she was a tougher person than everyone thought she was.

Which reminded her...why was she alone once again?

That phantom could tell her why...it was because he was the one who stole her friend away from her...

Once again, she hated Danny for taking the side of the phantom, but for some reason, there was some odd feeling over her...

As much as she loathed Danny, she at the same time, just...couldn't stay angry at him. Sure, she was raging the day he left the hospital without saying a word, but in her head, she knew that somehow she was the one that started his anger in the first place...making him choose between her and Sam.

He was already between a rock and a hard place before he even got to her...and she _had _to drive him away...

She felt it was her fault that she no longer had Danny, even if the phantom had some part of it...she was part of the reason she was alone...

_"Some of this is me," _she said softly, as she finished her last bite of cereal. _"If I could just...take back those words..."_

.She took her bowl to the sink.

_"...take back the anger..."_

She picked up her backpack with all her ghost-hunting gear inside of it.

_"...just take it all back..."_

Valerie turned off the television.

_"...and everything would have been the same..."_ she said, opening the door and closing it behind her.

Something in her head told her to stop from leaving the house...that she was being too hasty...but she decided to ignore it...there were other things on her mind.

_"But Danny's no longer my friend, and he won't even talk to me...there's only one way out of this now,"_ she said. _"I have to get rid of Danny Phantom once and for all, for doing everything to me...my father, my house, and now my best friend...and that's a promise..."_

Closing her eyes after agreeing that it was the true decision, she ran down the hall of the old complex, jumping out the window while turning into ghost-hunter mode. Setting her feet in position, the jet sled appeared out of her shoes and she flew on it to school.

...Just as Danny's phone finally connected...and started ringing to an empty apartment.

_---Fenton household---_

Danny waited for five or six rings, and when he got the answering machine, he hung up.

"Why don't you leave a message?" asked Jazz.

"This is something I have to talk with her one-on-one, not something she can hear later," said Danny. "I have to do this now."

Jazz walked up to her brother. "Just be careful," she said. "After these events...just be careful..."

"I'll try," said Danny. "The last thing I need is for someone to accidentally get in the way of the fireworks."

"Hey, don't worry about it," said Jazz. "I'm sure things will be fine."

Danny looked at his watch. "Oh, crap, we're going to be late!" he exclaimed. "I 'm going to have to fly to school today! I'm going ghost!"

The two blue rings changing his clothes into his trademark black and silver uniform, he ran over to his backpack and slung it over his shoulder. Then he turned intangible and was about to fly through the wall...

"Wait a second!" said Jazz.

"What?" asked Danny, turning visible again. "Don't tell me that you think it's unsafe for me to do this! I've got that Astrology final today! I can't be late today!"

"Uh, no, actually," said Jazz with a small smile on her face and pushing the ends of her index fingers together. "Actually, I was wondering if...you could give me a ride?"

The slight exasperation on Danny's face completely died away as it soon became a smile accompanied by a laugh. "Sure," he said. "Here, get on my back."

Jazz was suddenly filled with excitement. "Oh, cool! But wait a second...let me get my stuff." She sprinted up the stairs to retrieve her backpack.

After what seemed like a while, she was downstairs. Danny watched her come down as she held her backpack...

...and something black.

"What's that?" he asked pointing to it.

"Oh, I saw it was snowing outside, so I got my long coat," she said, putting it on. "And I also have my black gloves on," she said, holding out her hands. "Who knows?" she said, laughing. "While we're up there, it'll probably be very cold...uhh...Danny? Is something wrong?"

Danny looked at her with a memory ringing like an alarm in his head. With that long coat on and those gloves, she looked just like...

He quickly snapped out of it and changed the subject in his mind. "Uh, no, nothing's wrong," he said. "I just never saw you in that coat before...is it new? It looks kind of nice on you..."

"Oh, thanks," said Jazz. "One of my friends gave it to me for Christmas. I figure I should wear it to show it off..."

Danny nodded. "All right...well, anyway, are you ready?"

After Jazz clutched onto his shoulders from the back, she yelled back, "Ready."

"OK," said Danny, turning them both intangible. "Just as a warning, this might be a little fast,"

"Fast?" asked Jazz. "What do you me-AUGHHHHHH!"

They were about to fly into the wall...but they phased through it and in the air.

Jazz was still screaming with her eyes closed, her hands clinging desperately to Danny's shoulders, trying not to fall off. He just laughed at her and said, "I told you so..."

When her screaming died down a bit, she spoke, "Well, next time, you can tell me when you want to pass through a wall!" she yelled cynically.

"Ah, Jazz, don't worry about it...just look at the view..."

She did. Sure, they were, well, really high...but Amity Park looked very pretty from where she currently was...especially during the Christmas holidays.

As she admired the view, she said, "I'll bet this is your favorite power as a ghost,"

Danny had to agree...while in the air, he felt a lot freer than a person stuck walking on the ground...flying was a great way to relieve stress.

When Casper High came into view, they flew down behind a large tree with snow on it, where Danny could turn back into human form without being seen.

"Well," said Danny, looking at Jazz, who had a slight dazed look on her face. "How was your first flying lesson?"

"It was cool," said Jazz. "Thanks, little brother," she said, hugging him.

"Heh, anytime," said Danny.

"HEY!" yelled a voice in the distance. He whirled around to see Sam and Tucker running towards them.

"Ah, this is my cue to leave, so see you later," said Jazz, walking away.

"Bye," said Danny, turning to look at his friends. "Hey, you two, what's up?"

"We're fine," said Tucker. "Hey, look what I've got!" He reached into his bag and pulled out a hat.

Danny laughed as he recognized the same contraption Tucker had on last Christmas with a piece of mistletoe attached on a string above his head.

"Instant scoring!" said Tucker.

Sam laughed too, but rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on, Tucker, do you really think that's going to work? I mean, there's mistletoe hanging over every single door frame in the school, anyway...so you have a lot of chances!"

"But how about during those times I'm not under a door? Huh?" he asked. "Didn't think about that, did you?"

Sam sighed. "Well, anyway," she said, turning to Danny, "You ready for that test today?"

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be," said Danny. "Let's get this over with..."

"And do you have your Secret Santa present?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said, taking it out. "So where do we put it, like under a large tree or something?"

"No," said Tucker. "Didn't you hear?"

"Hear what?" asked Danny.

"At lunch today, we're supposed to present our gifts in person," said Sam. "Didn't you know that?"

"No," said Danny, suddenly starting to panic. "I had no clue...that kind of ruins the concept of _Secret_ Santa, doesn't it?"

"Well, go figure," said Sam. "I have to actually give my present my gift to _Paulina_!"

"And I too, except to Dash!" said Tucker, holding a package that unquestionably held a football. "They should warn us that they're going to do something like this..."

"Which reminds me, Danny," said Sam. "You still never told us who you have..."

"I guess when lunch comes around, you'll see..." said Danny, followed by an evil grin on his face.

"Oh, come on, Danny!" said Sam. "We already told ours, now tell us yours...you owe us!"

He was about to protest, but then another thing crossed his mind...

"Well, Sam," said Danny, suddenly turning around and stooping down. "I guess you're right...there is something I owe you, I guess..."

"What would that be?" asked Sam. "The answer to this mystery?"

"No," said Danny, turning around just as fast and tossing a snowball at her. "I owe you that for that snowball you threw at me last week!" He laughed and started running towards the school entrance.

"Get back here!" said Sam, chasing after him. "You're gonna pay for that!"

"Try and catch me!" said Danny.

She charged after him with a mixture of fury and laughter on her face.

Tucker just watched them, walking slowly towards the school and laughing to himself. There was almost no denying it...those two...he knew that any time...it was bound to happen...

And Valerie, who had seen the whole thing from a distance, also knew it, too. Sighing, her face formed a frown...a frown that was followed by a faint tear that welled up in her eye.

It slid down her face and landed in the snow, where it disappeared.

Walking up the steps of the school, she knew that she met _him_ today, she would be ready.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The test wasn't so bad, to Danny's appeasement...it felt as if he had actually overstudied, if it was even possible...

There was only one thing that was wrong...and for some reason, no one else seemed to be bothered by it...

He felt as if he was the only cold person in the room...and today, it felt like it was literally working in a room made of ice.

Why was Lancer's room always so cold? Danny felt as if it was a factor against him as he tried filling out the answer to the final question on the test. Shivering, he put on his jacket and read the question about Orion's belt.

Danny's move stirred some of the class from their tests. _"What are they all staring at?"_ he thought. _"I'm just cold..."_

He looked around the rest of the room, and all heads turned back down towards their sheets once again, where he could see everyone busily scratching their pencils, some even desperately trying to finish on time.

How were they all able to stand this weather, and not him? Even Dash had taken off his jacket and was wearing only his black shirt underneath...why was he cursed with always being so affected by the cold?

Taking it out of his mind, and putting his attention back on the test, he made his best attempts at spelling out the star "Betelgeuse."

He wasn't sure how that last star was spelled...and of course, it had to be worth most of that question...it was annoying...

When there was only two minutes left for class time, it all ended. "Time's up!" said Lancer. And going through the rows, he collected all the tests.

"Cold, are we, Mr. Fenton?" asked Lancer as he took his sheet.

"Yeah," said Danny glumly. "I don't know why..."

"Neither do I," said Mr. Lancer, as he passed him to collect Tucker's test. "I mean, considering that it's about seventy-five degrees in here."

_"Seventy-five?"_ thought Danny. _"What gives?"_

"You will get your results when you come back from winter vacation..." said Lancer when the last sheet was collected. "I'll be looking forward to grading these..."

The bell rang, followed by a flurry of students trying to get out of the classroom.

"Have a good vacation!" he called. Then, muttering under his breath, _"better than mine, probably..."_

Danny noticed the scowl in Lancer's voice. "What was his problem?" he asked.

"Secret Santa for the teachers goes first before school in the teachers' lounge," said Tucker. "Rumor has it that someone gave him coal for Christmas..."

Sam and Danny both laughed.

"Well," said Tucker, taking out his gift for Dash, "It's now or never!"

"Same here," said Sam, retrieving Paulina's sweater from her pack. "What about you, Danny?"

"Yeah, I guess so," he said, taking out his gift. "But I don't get it at all...weren't you all cold in there?"

"Why?" asked Sam. "Lancer said it himself...it was almost eighty in there...you'd have to be some kind of nut to be wearing your jacket in there...it kind of surprised me when you put it on..."

"But, I saw my own breath..." said Danny, as they pushed open the doors to the cafeteria.

The sound of a scream met their ears as a sudden rush of terrified students rushed out of the area. The three friends stood there at the chaotic scene in front of them. It was the shambles...nearly every single table had been flipped over and wrapping paper and food littered the entire area. There were also some screaming kids still in the area, and some were even hiding under tables.

"What's going on?" asked Tucker.

"I-I don't know..." said Sam.

But Danny felt the worst of it, when he found the answer to his question as a blue ectoplasmic smoke escaped from his mouth...

"Oh no," he said. "Here? _Now?_"

"GHOST!" yelled a screaming girl passing by, and jetting towards the cafeteria doors.

Danny's eyes shifted to the left and found the target. He ran behind an overturned table and went ghost, and ran up to his friends once again.

"What?" asked Tucker. "You were sensing a ghost this time?"

"Yes, unfortunately," he said, pointing. "And guess who?"

A smiling Spectra, holding aloft a teenager in the air as he struggled to get free, drained all of the misery out of him and put him back down on the floor, where he lay in a sullen mood.

"Ah, that feels good!" she said as she inhaled the green vapors of misery surrounding her. "Teens today...such a waterfall of misery!"

She flew towards another screaming girl, cowering in the corner.

"Ah, you'll do!" said Spectra, floating towards her.

"STAY AWAY FROM HER!" yelled Danny, landing behind her.

"Huh?" asked Spectra. When she turned around, she suddenly smiled. She took no notice when the girl left the corner and sprinted towards the door.

"Well, if it isn't the ghost boy!" she said, now beaming. "Did you miss me?"

"Of course not!" said Danny, firing a blast at her. But because of all the power she had inhaled over the weeks, she easily dodged the ray and knocked him over in a tackle.

Flying up again, he tried a tackle of his own. But Spectra read his moves and dodged him again, once again knocking him off balance and sending him into a table. Danny got up from the table and fired another ray at her, which she dodged once again and fired several shots of her own at him.

Danny whirled around in every possible direction to avoid them all.

When Spectra paused for a second, Danny put up a shield with his hands and flew at her, his hand charging a shot as he did so.

She quickly flew behind him and knocked him towards the ground, the shield and charged shot disappearing from his hands. After he hit the cafeteria floor, she immediately formed some ectoplasmic balls with her left hand and started throwing them at Danny.

Rolling out of the way of the first one, he became airborne and dodged every single one of them.

Exhausted from all the dodging, he looked around. She was nowhere to be seen...she must have been invisible...

He was right...after she reappeared, a look of horror came across his face as he saw her inching up on Sam and Tucker, who were completely defenseless.

"Aren't you two this ghost kid's cheering squad?" she asked them. "Well, I guess I'll have to get rid of you, then!" Her hand pointing straight up, her finger charged up a red ray.

"HELP!" screamed Tucker, trying to shield himself. Sam, trembling in fear, was doing the same thing.

"LEAVE THEM OUT OF THIS!" yelled Danny, charging towards his foe's back.

Bad move. Spectra suddenly turned around and a laser-thin beam came out of it.

The resulting shot paralyzed him.

"That's better," said Spectra, building up green energy in both her hands. "I knew you would come after these two if I decided to target them!"

"NO! DANNY!" yelled Sam as the charged shot flew directly at him, her hand hopelessly reaching out in his direction as if she could pull him out of the way.

Unable to dodge it, Danny helplessly felt its tremendous force. It was a blast unlike anything he had felt before...he literally felt as if his insides were flaming. A death-like scream erupted from his mouth as he fell to the ground face-up, steaming.

"Enjoy all the new powers?" asked Spectra, floating over him. "I've been plundering misery for weeks! A simple ghost ray isn't going to stop me, let alone a simple ghost kid!"

Her ghost tail wrapping around him, she then threw him into various glass, metal, and plastic objects before she finally let him loose, his back crashing into a wall.

Danny staggered back up. His forehead was bleeding, having been smashed by a drinking glass and a metal serving tray.

"Had enough yet?" she asked in a taunting voice.

Screaming in anger, Danny shrugged off his unquestionable pain and flew around her in a tight circle, creating a whirlwind. Firing a ray at the whirl, it created a spinning green fire that Spectra found herself in the middle of, as she screamed in pain.

Danny took out the Fenton thermos, but the whirlwind of fire ended as quickly as it started, as Spectra broke free of it and shot a beam that knocked the thermos out of his hand.

"You think you're tough, huh?" she asked, turning around and intangible. "Then catch me if you can!"

She flew through the roof, flying in a loop that was mockingly pleading him to give chase.

Danny took the free time to check on his friends, who were still in shock.

"Are you two OK?" he asked.

"We're fine," said Tucker. Then he noticed the cut on his forehead. "Danny!" he exclaimed, pointing a shaking finger at it. "You're..."

"It's nothing," he said. "I just want to make sure you're all right."

"Danny," said Sam, her voice genuinely full of fear and shaking. "I'm scared..."

"Me too," said Danny, his head down. "She's definitely a lot more powerful." -he punched the wall- "Dang it...this is all my fault..."

"No, it isn't," said Sam.

"Yes it is," said Danny. "I should have tried to find her earlier...now she's more powerful, and thanks to me, you two almost got hurt...it is my fault..."

He flew over to the corner, where he retrieved the fallen thermos.

"Danny!" said Tucker. "You're not thinking of going after her, are you?"

"Of course I am!" said Danny. "She's already done enough! I have to take her down right now before anyone else gets hurt!"

"Then we're going with you," said Tucker, helping a shaking Sam up from the floor.

"NO!" said Danny. "You two are staying here, at all costs! This is too dangerous!"

"But..." Sam began.

"No," Danny repeated, flying over to them. "If you get hurt, I'll never forgive myself for this..."

"But what if she..." she began, but once again got cut off.

"I won't let you," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I'm not letting you take the risk of getting hurt...she already went after you once...and that's not happening again. Promise me you'll stay here!"

Sam stared back into Danny's eyes. As afraid as she was of the situation, she wanted to be there with him...but she couldn't bring herself to protest.

"OK," she said, her head going down. "But in return, promise me one thing,"

"What?" asked Danny.

As soon as the word left his mouth, she had him in a bear hug so tight that it cut off his breathing. "Promise me you'll come back! Please!"

Danny returned the hug. "I promise," he said, patting her on the back.

He tried to leave, but she remained locked, as if it would be the last time she would see him. When it persisted, he actually had to turn himself intangible that he slipped right through her. Sam turned around, her hand rubbing against her other arm.

"Good luck, man," said Tucker, giving him a high-five. "You can do it, Danny...I know you can."

Danny did his best to give them a smile of sincerity that he would come back, but he knew that there was a chance he might not.

"I'll be back," he said, flying through the roof.

Tucker and Sam ran outside the cafeteria to see him off, as he flew through the snow after Spectra, both praying for the best.

Suddenly, a voice yelled out "DANNY!" after him.

Trying to locate the source of the voice, they found that it belonged to Jazz.

"DANNY!" she yelled again. No luck. He was out of earshot.

Tucker and Sam watched as Jazz suddenly paced back and forth, her face in a panic.

"No," she said softly. "I'm too late..."

"What?" asked Tucker. "He's going after Spectra."

Jazz stopped and her hands cradled her head as she said softly, "Why did you let him go? He's in deep trouble!"

"No," said Sam. "He made us believe that he can do this, so he left."

"Why didn't you go after him?" asked Jazz, her hands still covering her face.

"We promised him that we wouldn't interfere," said Tucker.

"But you don't understand!" said Jazz. "He's in more trouble than you think! Valerie's after him, too! They had a fight, and now Valerie's got more of an incentive to get rid of him!"

"They had a fight?" asked Tucker. "When did that happen?"

Jazz suddenly stopped. She realized that Danny had never told his friends about Valerie and she had already said a mouthful. But before she was given a chance to explain, she saw something red streaming across the sky.

It was Valerie on her jet sled, flying in the direction that Danny was going.

"Oh no!" said Jazz. "She saw him! Now she's going after him!"

And before Sam and Tucker could say anything, Jazz covered herself with the long black coat and gloves from earlier and started sprinting in that direction.

"No! Jazz!" yelled Tucker. "Don't go! It's too dangerous over there!"

"Danny's my brother!" she screamed back. "He can't fight all these battles himself. He's going to need help!"

"NO!" he yelled again, but she was already had her mind made up.

"Dang it!" he said. Then he started running after her. "JAZZ!" he called out, running. "STOP!"

"Where are you going, Tucker?" yelled Sam. "Danny told us to stay here!"

"I have to stop her!" he yelled. "Jazz can get seriously hurt! Danny would kill me if something happened to Jazz!" He continued running, calling out Jazz's name.

"TUCKER!" she yelled, staying rooted in that spot. "Come back!"

She felt the nerve to go after him...but her promise to Danny to stay was in opposition with her desire to run towards Tucker. The conflict rose in higher and higher levels in her head...but soon it reached a point where there was only one choice that she could make...a choice that she was willing to take from the beginning...

"TUCKER!" screamed Sam once again, now starting to run after them. "Wait for me!"

_A/N: Send a review, please..._


	11. Falling Rain

_**Chapter 11 - Falling Rain**_

_A/N: Well, here we are, now on the eleventh chapter...from what I see among reviews, a lot of you were waiting for this, and I'll deliver...but I feel a lot of you will want to kill me for what I'm about to leave you..._

_Well, only one way to find out...Chapter 11..._

White particles of falling snow blinded her face as she continued running to catch up with Tucker and Jazz. She was hoping in her mind that she wasn't too late...

The streets were oddly empty, and Sam was wondering why there was no one around...after all, it was still a little past one o'clock, and there wasn't even a car that was driving on the road...

She took the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to run past all of the lights in a frenzied effort to find one of her friends...

...And saw Tucker. He was leaning against a lamppost, kneeling.

Skidding against the slippery walk to brake, Sam ran over to him. There was a look of anguish on his face...it looked like he was hurt.

"TUCKER!" she yelled, getting his attention.

He let out a pained, "_Sam?_"

She knelt down next to him. "What happened?"

Tucker let out another pained yelp as the agony on his face remained. _"My...knee..." _he said, clutching it.

She gasped. "Oh, man, are you all right?"

"No..." he said in a pained whisper. "I was running to catch up with Jazz and I slipped on the sidewalk...as I was falling, my knee crashed against the lamppost...I think it's broken..." He yelped again as he continued grasping it.

"Where's Jazz?" she asked in a low tone, with some fear within it.

"Sh-she's still running to help Danny..." he said. "I caught up with her, but as I was doing so, I slipped...she ran over to help me a little bit, but then took off for Danny once again...I tried to stop her by yelling out to her, but I couldn't...I can't even stand..."

Sam was still in disbelief. "Tucker..." she said. "I have to get you to the hospital..." She attempted to help him off the ground, but he pushed her hand away.

"You can't carry me all the way to the hospital!" said Tucker. "It's over a mile from here!"

"What do you want me to do, then?" she asked.

He stared at her as if there was no other possibility in the world. "_You_...you have to go after Jazz..." he strained out. "You can stop her..."

Sam's eyes widened as her disbelief grew. "But I can't do that...I promised Danny..."

"You have to go!" yelled Tucker, as if it took all of his strength to say that. "We may have promised Danny that we would stay behind, but sometimes we have to break our promises...and this is an exception! Jazz could get hurt!"

"But...but what about _you_?" she yelled. "I can't just _leave_ you here!"

"I'll be fine!" he said. "Please...we've already lost a lot of time...you have to go after her!"

More conflict arose in Sam's head. Now she was faced with staying with Tucker or going after her best friend, who was basically flying towards a battlefield. Precious seconds ticked by, as she once again was faced with making a difficult choice.

Far up in the sky, a frightening flash occurred in the grey sky, accompanied by loud booms...it seemed to be a warning sign of oncoming danger...she was too scared to move...

When her silence continued, Tucker forced out two last words.

"SAM! GO!"

A look of pain spread across her own face as she said softly, _"I'm sorry, Danny..."_

Facing Tucker, she said, "OK...I'll...go after her."

"I'll be fine here," he repeated. "You have to go after Jazz...please...she could get hurt..."

Smiling sadly, and taking one last look at him, she ran off. Once again, that same prayer that she would be on time remained in her head...

Hope was her only weapon now.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Danny continued flying, in a desperate search for Spectra. He was quite sure that she had flown in this direction, but couldn't find any trace of her. She had disappeared once again.

He stopped in mid-flight to take a quick glance around...but there was nothing...just the regular snow, some buildings around...

...and a giant green flash of light that careened into his face.

"AHHH!" he screamed, as the surprise attack knocked him backward into a wall.

Looking up with dazed eyes to locate the attacker, his line of vision locked with the treacherous Spectra, in her black and ragged form.

"Well, look who decided to show up!" she said, her red eyes glowing more fiercely than ever.

"This ends now!" screamed Danny, flying up to her level. His head still aching from the earlier assaults, he charged her at full speed. Spectra, not expecting it, was knocked a few feet back before she regained control. Then she charged at him herself, her hands outstretched. Danny luckily, flew out of the way before she could drain him of any misery he held.

He started chasing after her in vengeance, his anger at an all time high as he flew after her back and forth, dodging through buildings or simply phasing through them.

But as they descended into a dark alley, Spectra blended in perfectly with the darkness and disappeared. When Danny flew right through it and emerged on the other side, no one was in front of him. He immediately stopped and looked around, floating in the air.

Taking her chance, Spectra flew out of the dark and charged into his back, sending him spiraling towards the pavement. As his face hurtled towards a manhole cover in the street that just happened to be in the direction he was falling, he knew that it was like reliving the nightmares again...

As his head collided with it, he knew another wound to his already damaged forehead was more than he needed...

Forcing himself to stand up again, he evaded another one of Spectra's blasts and played the dodging game again, zigzagging in every possible direction to avoid the blasts. When she stopped, he flew up and sent some of his own in her direction, all of which also missed, as she spun around him in a tight circle, her speed unfortunately raised...

Danny stopped before he got dizzy and took a breath. Meanwhile, Spectra, her hands glowing green again, flew at him at high speed in an attempt to grab him. Sensing her intentions at the last second, he spun out of the way, evading the attack...

...but also causing the Fenton thermos to fall out of his possession and land with a clank on the street.

Looking at each other in wild surprise, and letting the events of the current situation run wildly in fast-forward, both ghosts flew towards it at full speed, both reaching for it...

Spectra snatched it first.

Danny, his hand having missed the strap by inches, cursed himself for the grave error on his part, and flew out of the open before Spectra could see him. He hid in a corner, where he turned invisible, hoping she would not detect him.

"Where are you, ghost boy?" Spectra asked with a mocking laugh, the thermos charged in her hand. "Come on and show yourself...I have a little _present_ for you!"

Her own ghost sense honing in on him, he knew that he could not stay in one place...he flew through the building behind his back in order to throw her off the scent...but she kept right on following him, maybe not in his direct path, but still in his general direction...when he ran out of space, he phased through the building again, back into the open...

When he watched her phase back into the open herself, hot on his trail, he knew he couldn't avoid her forever...but he also didn't want to risk getting trapped in his own thermos...he couldn't just send a blast out of her hand, it would give away his position and she would capture him in her already-charged thermos...or rather, _his_ thermos, stolen by _her_...he started sweating, fearing she would locate him at any moment...

And a brilliant idea came to his head...

Quietly wiping some of the perspiration and blood on his forehead, he let it collect in a puddle in his hand. When there was enough, he flung the mixture away...

Spectra's sense detected his DNA in the sweat as it flew past her. "So _there_ you are!" yelled Spectra, turning her back on Danny's true position and sending the thermos' blue light towards the spot of the thrown distraction.

His plan a success, he became visible again as his right hand blasted a ghost ray, which hit the distracted Spectra in the back. Screaming, and spinning wildly out of control spread-eagled, Spectra flew face first into the street, not moving. Her clutch-less hand opened, the thermos rolling out of it...

...and towards a storm drain.

His heart racing, he quickly sped up in the air to retrieve it before it rolled right into the sewer, his hands reaching desperately...

...but to see another hand grab it before he could.

Flying past the area once again and into the unknown, he stopped once again to face his rival.

Only to be shocked to see that there was now a new rival on the field...

Valerie.

Time seemed to slow down as it sunk in that she was the one standing there on her jet sled. Endless torrents of panic flew in and out of his stomach as they just stood there facing each other, lightning now starting to strike the background. Though he couldn't see it, he could easily picture a very angry face behind that mask she wore.

Just like the battle from before, she happened to come in at the wrong time once again.

But now she had the Fenton thermos...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile, Sam had finally caught up with Jazz.

"Sam!" yelled Jazz when she found her. "Get out of here! You could get hurt!"

After she caught her breath, Sam looked directly at her and said, "_I _could get hurt? I'm here to make sure that YOU don't get hurt!"

"I can take care of myself!" she yelled. "But Danny's still young...he has to realize that he can't do everything on his own!" As she took out the Fenton Peeler, she remembered her own promise to him during that one night a few weeks ago after his first dream...

"But Danny's also the one with the ghost powers!" said Sam, watching as Jazz activated the weapon and let the metallic suit surround her.

"It doesn't matter," said Jazz. "I'm still going after him, and no one is going to stop me..."

Sam placed herself directly in Jazz's way, stretching out her arms. "You're going to have to go through ME to do it, then!"

"Sam, let me go!" yelled Jazz. "I have to help Danny!"

When she refused, Jazz had to go to extremes. She moved Sam out of the way. With the power of the suit, it was an easy task.

"I'm sorry," yelled Jazz as she ran past her.

Sam, however, still wasn't giving up, as she shook it off and continued running after her.

"Jazz, please!" she yelled. "YOU HAVE TO GET BACK HERE!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

His panic was reaching high levels again, as the stand-off continued.

Danny watched as Valerie broke off the contest and looked down, examining the thermos in her hand. She then set it in his direction.

"Been waiting a long time for this..." she said, ready to pull the switch.

Danny approached her cautiously. "Valerie..." he said, trying to coax her out of her rage, "please..."

"STOP CALLING ME BY MY FIRST NAME!" she screamed, still pointing it in direction. He could see that her hand was shaking on the activating button. "YOU RUINED EVERYTHING!"

"Valerie..." he repeated with his hands up, palms facing her. "I didn't..."

"YES YOU DID, WHATEVER YOU'RE ABOUT TO SAY!" she yelled, still pointing the thermos at him as if it were a gun. "You took my house, my father's job, my life...you are responsible for EVERYTHING!" Her voice was shaking, as if she was crying at the same time.

She activated the trigger...Danny flew out of the way, the light missing him by inches.

"Valerie..." he tried again, trying to use the same caution once again. "the ghost dog...that was not my fault...it wasn't even mine..."

"YOU LIAR!" shouted the ghost hunter. "You call yourself the protector of this town?" she yelled out, the haunting words fading back into Danny's memory. "I'm the only one who knows what your TRUE intentions are!"

Activating the thermos again, she pointed it directly at Danny, who flew out of the way just in time again, but this time jumping over her so that he could snatch the thermos out of her hand. Valerie looked at him angrily and took out one of her guns as he strapped the thermos to his waist again.

"Please..." he begged. "I don't want to fight you...I just want to..."

"Enough of your talk!" she screamed. "I've been done talking! A LONG TIME AGO!"

As he dodged another shot from Valerie, his heart filled with an emotion that he had never had towards Valerie for a while now...hate. It was building up inside of him in his frustration of an inability to get through to her.

_"Valerie..." _he said again, anger now rising in his voice. _"Don't force me..."_

"Why would I? You took everything away! Even my friends!" she shouted. Then her voice became shaky again, as hurting memories came back to her. _"You took Danny away..."_

"Danny?" he asked incredulously, trying to put that mistake into the void. "What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb with me, ghost!" she yelled, firing another round of gun blasts that Danny had to avoid. "You were the one who told Fenton to stay away from me! You made me lose my friends!"

"I had _nothing_ to do with that!" yelled Danny. "All that talk was...SPECTRA!"

She had gained conciousness again, and was right behind Valerie...

"VALERIE!" he shouted. "Turn around!"

"Don't try and fool me, ghost!" said Valerie. "I'm up to your tricks!"

"NO!" he yelled. "LOOK BEHIND YOU!"

"Do you think that I'm that du-AAUGGHH!" she screamed, when Spectra got a hold of her.

"Oh, poor little kid!" said Spectra, her hands on Valerie's shoulders, absorbing her misery. "There, there, tell Spectra all about it..." Valerie started going limp in Spectra's hands.

Danny had finally had enough of her. His rage reaching higher points, he flew towards Spectra with everything he had.

Danny rammed into her stomach, which caused Spectra to accidentally drop Valerie. She fell to the ground.

Looking down at the ghost hunter to see if she was all right, Danny flew up at Spectra so he could target her again, his eyes no longer glowing green, but now brown from a mid-transformation.

"LEAVE..." - he punched her in the gut - "MY..." - he blasted an ectoplasmic ray at her head - "FRIENDS..." - he grabbed her tail and threw her towards a building's dumpster - "ALONE!" Spectra hit the bottom of the dumpster and it shut upon her.

Danny phased through the dumpster and yanked her out into the open. Holding her by the neck, and a charged hand ready to blast her again, he was shaking with fury.

"Ohh...anger!" said Spectra, laughing. "You do realize that letting out this much anger leads to disastrous results..."

"NOT CARING!" yelled Danny, blasting her in the stomach, which forced her away, screaming and flying away in a circle.

Spectra righted herself and morphed her hand into a lasso. Taking hold of a surprised Danny, she swung him around like a bolo and let him go, his back crashing against another wall.

His right shoulder was hurting.

Gingerly testing it and touching it, it throbbed quite painfully...

...but it wasn't broken...

He sat there, with once-again blurred vision, staring straight ahead. Spectra landed in front of him, her eyes glowing brighter and her smile wider than ever.

Danny looked at her in absolute hate...his anger consuming...

"How the mighty have fallen!" she laughed out. "Oh, Danny, you always have seemed to come up short during these past two weeks...but now, there's nothing here that can stop me..."

He could only blink at the realization that she was right...Spectra was only fought off the last time because Jazz was there to help him...but now he was alone...

"I suppose I should leave you alone and let you stew in your own miseries..." she said. "But what can I do, just letting a free treatment slip through my fingers...I couldn't be that way, shouldn't I?"

She reached out her hands to grab him.

And he was glowing green...vulnerable and weakened...

But somewhere in that mind of his...another presence had laid dormant...

But with all the emotions he held, that presence was starting to stir...

"You're mine!" Spectra yelled, now coming towards him faster...

It was suddenly as if time was freezing once again...Danny's green eyes swiftly blinked as the words of the other ghost went through one ear and out the other. During the moments his eyes were closed, he could actually feel the message being relayed in every part of his head before the sound resonated out the other ear. But like a trigger word at the same time...it awakened the presence within.

When his eyes opened again after the blink, his eyes were no longer green.

They were ruby.

His rage was well beyond his control now...that presence was taking over him just like Freakshow's crystal orb...the green light surrounding him now turned scarlet, matching the color of his eyes. All other human emotions seemed to fly off into the void...only anger remained...

Before Spectra could touch him...he caught her by the wrist. Spectra, surprised, but also quivering in fear of Danny's new transformation, looked at him at awe as she couldn't find any ability to break free, even by trying to phase out of it...

**_"GET AWAY FROM ME..."_** yelled Danny, now getting up from where he sat. Now his voice had changed...no longer was it the voice of the carefree adolescent ghost, but now of a dark, deep voice that resembled something of a possible future...

The Dan Phantom out of the half-ghost had arisen from within.

Spectra was now absolutely terrified, as she continued struggling in vain to get away. She tried everything with her other hand...blasts, rays, everything...but Dan put up a shield with his own free hand, the projectiles uselessly bouncing off of it. She screamed.

As her screams came through, something in the new Danny heard _that, _and then awakened. It was the adolescent Danny, now having switched places with his evil self in some sort of blackened prison in his own mind.

_"Where am I?"_ he thought. It was rather strange...it was like a dark world full of shadows...there was no light at all...he was trapped...trapped in some sort of darkened orb...

But as he continued looking around, the idea was rather clear...he knew that this was the place where his true evil ghost spirit was locked, now free, due to his uncontrollable rage...

He heard more screams for help...and the noises seemed to be coming in with a deafening echo...Danny whirled around, where his eyes met some sort of strange and vibrant light, almost like an old-fashioned projection screen. The light suddenly morphed into a setting, where he instantly recognized the world he was just in...Danny realized that he was now looking through his own eyes, which were under control by the new him, where he could not reach out to anyone...

Dan continued holding Spectra aloft, walking out of the alley.

Once he was out in the open, his anger-heightened senses detected something flying behind him. Turning quickly, he saw it was an ectoplasmic blast from a now conscious Valerie. His hand blocked it, and like lightning, he flew up to Valerie and took her by her wrist as well. He held up both ghost hunter and ghost at the same time in his hands, both panic-stricken.

Danny continued watching himself in fear as her pressed his face against his own sight...

Dan let go of their wrists. But before they could fly away to freedom, he simply waved his hand...and paralyzed them. He flew around them so he could see their faces, both panic-stricken.

**_"WELL, LOOK WHAT WE HAVE HERE..."_** said Dan. **_"TWO PEOPLE WHO WISH TO DESTROY ME..."_**

He blasted both of them with ghost rays, but they still remained paralyzed.

But Valerie he hit only once...more blasts lashed out at Spectra, hitting her over and over again

"Let me go!" yelled Valerie, scared about Spectra's fate. "Please, let me go!"

"Oh, no!" said trapped adolescent Danny, now starting to beat against the walls of his prison. "Valerie! NOO!"

He watched, however, as Dan moved up to her and give her a surprising offer. **_"I GUESS I SHOULD...I HAVE NO QUARREL WITH YOU..."_**

He waved his hand in front of her so that she was no longer paralyzed. But instead of letting her fly away, he grabbed her by the wrist again and threw her away. She landed in some bushes.

Dan turned his attention back on Spectra, who was still cowering.

**_"HMM...WHAT SHOULD I DO?...OH...I KNOW SOMETHING PERFECT..."_**

Adolescent Danny, still trying to beat his way out back into control of his body, was trying everything he could to break out of his own prison...

"NO!" he screamed. "How do I get out of here?"

As much as he hated to admit it, Spectra was right...his anger was leading to disastrous results...this was probably how Dan Phantom came to be in the first place...

"Let me back in!" he screamed, beating in his prison. "Let me back in!"

**_"SOMETHING I OWE YOU FOR THESE TWO WEEKS..."_** said Dan.

Dan Phantom opened his mouth and took a deep breath...Spectra still trying to struggle free...

The adolescent stopped beating and stared in horror through his own eyes...his uncontrollable side of rage was about to summon up his ghostly wail!

Using that was way too dangerous...Valerie was in the area...

He had to break through _somehow_...he had to hurry, as Dan Phantom finished taking in breath...

"Get me out of here!" he yelled. "I'm sorry!" he screamed, his anger seeming to lower in volume as sincerity began taking its place. "I'M SORRY! PLEASE LET ME OUT OF HERE!"

The first few waves started erupting from Dan's mouth as time slowed to a near crawl...

It was too late...

Realizing the new mess, Danny screamed out one last "NOO!" and shook his head at the same time in disbelief, his hands covering his face

...but at the same exact moment, no longer was he feeling anger, but pity...and desire for change...

The new emotions quickly swept aside the anger...and at the same time, some breach occurred...suddenly, he was forced through it and he was spinning wildly through a tunnel of light and shadow, his mouth still screaming the same phrase...he had no clue where it was leading to...

But meanwhile, Danny's outward appearance was changing...the red light around him disappeared, and his eyes turned back to green...

Danny had successfully regained control of his body...while still screaming "NOO!" except there was another thing added...

His wail was still in effect, and he could not stop it...

There was nothing he could do except change its course...

At the last second, Danny tilted his head so that the waves would target something other than Spectra, who was now free of her paralysis. They simply blew her away...off into another direction...

Danny was also careful to make sure that Valerie was also out of range...the new target was now locked towards an open and empty street that seemed safe enough...

But unfortunately, it wasn't. In fact, it made things a lot worse. A million different heart attacks came to him at the same time, as he saw two people run directly into the street...

He watched helplessly in slow-motion as both of them were lifted off their feet in the path of the ghostly wail...

Danny's stomach churned unpleasantly as he heard the two people scream...one flew off to the right, where the person crashed through a window headfirst in a nearby building, while the other was forced back against an old building, some type of suit disappearing around her...

Panicking...Danny quickly flew towards the one that crashed through the window, praying that the person was still alive...

...but when he found the person, for a few split seconds, his heart had stopped beating.

It was Sam.

From the way that she looked, sprawled on the old floor, Danny absolutely felt sick. Her clothes were completely torn up and blood-soaked pieces of glass littered the floor all around her. The fingers on one of her hands were disfigured from being torn up from broken glass and one of her legs was broken. Her left arm was bending at a horrid angle, and her now unruly raven hair was draped around a once delicate face, now bleeding from being scarred by flying shards of glass.

She wasn't moving.

Danny's heart racing, he flew over to her and tried to see if there was any sort of pulse.

But with his shaky hands, he couldn't read if there was one...

_"NOOOOO!" _he screamed to the heavens, as tears welled up in his green eyes. _"SAM!"_ Only lightning and thunder heeded his call.

_"Why didn't you stay?" _he said, choking back tears. _"I TOLD YOU TO STAY! WHY DIDN'T YOU?"_

Then another scream came to his ears, interrupting his cries of agony.

Danny quickly phased out of the building and looked at the other person he had forgotten about. He watched a girl, with two broken legs, desperately trying to crawl away from the old building. He looked up, and saw that his wail had disturbed an old billboard atop it. It had become loose, and was already falling...

"Crap!" he cried. He flew at high speeds in order to save the girl, but she was just too far away...

With one last scream, the billboard fell right on top of her. After a few seconds, she too, was silent.

Danny stopped in mid-air, his heart stopping again as he started taking in one more horrifying nightmare.

_"No..."_ he thought. _"That scream...it sounded like Jazz's..."_

It couldn't be possible...no...Sam was already enough...but no, it couldn't be...not Jazz, too...

Going intangible, he dropped through the billboard and pulled out the girl.

When her unconscious body was brought out into the light, he screamed in agony as his greatest nightmares were confirmed.

Jazz wasn't moving, either...

Other than her broken legs, Danny could see evidence of head injury...her clothes were also torn up, and numerous cuts and bruises covered her body, most of them severely.

He broke down right there as tears flowed down his face like rivers, kneeling down next to his sister.

_"NOOO! JAZZ!"_ he screamed, pounding the street until his knuckles bled from the pounding. _"NOO! NOT YOU, TOO!"_

His thoughts running at a million miles per hour...it came on one conclusion that he was wishing with all his might.

A nightmare...this _had _to be another dream. If only he could wake up from it...

He built up ghost energy in his hand and shot it directly into his stomach...

All he received was one aching stomach...instead of waking up like he was wishing, he only got sicker, as he proceeded to throw up from the combined stress of seeing both his sister and Sam, plus his own attack.

Then it came forward that this was not a dream...it was reality...

He continued bawling...the worst part was that this time, everything _was_ his fault...he was the one who summoned all the anger, the one who broke him away from Valerie, the one who set off the ghostly wail...

...the one who caused the pain of two of the most important people of his life...

His dreams...they were a signal...a signal that if his anger got out of control as a ghost, then that was how the future would end up..._that_ was what Spectra was talking all about...

...Even if what happened in those dreams wasn't exactly how it ended up, it was still a sign of foreshadowing...

...He ignored them...it was _all_ him..._ALL_ his fault...

Danny cursed himself...nothing ever went his way...

Through tears, he looked at his sister lying there on the ground...

What was he doing here? He shouldn't be here, just grieving...

He had to get both Sam and Jazz to the hospital...

...so they could have a chance at life...so _he_ could have another chance...

Praying that there was enough time, and tears continuing their flow, he flew through the other building and gingerly lifted Sam's body out into the open, and carefully lay her next to Jazz. He tried to be as careful as possible.

But when he was ready to lift them up and fly them away, something stopped him.

A gun was pointed at his head.

"YOU DAMN GHOST!" yelled a voice.

Danny turned around. It was Valerie.

"DAMN GHOST!" she yelled again, looking at Sam and Jazz. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?"

"I didn't do this," Danny protested. But he knew deep down, that he did...

"YOU ARE SO GOING TO PAY FOR THIS!" she screamed, her gun shaking. "YOU KILLED THEM! NOW I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" However, it was strange for her to say this if he himself was already dead...

"I did not kill them..." he tried saying, but was cut off.

"YOU DID, TOO!" she screamed.

"THEY'RE NOT DEAD!" he yelled back, praying at the same time in the back of his mind that it was true. He moved away from her and towards Sam and Jazz, but she moved in his way.

"GET AWAY FROM THEM, OR I SWEAR I'LL SHOOT YOU!" she screamed.

"I'm taking them to the hospital," he said. "Now move out of the way!"

"LIAR!" she yelled. "YOU? TAKING THEM TO A HOSPITAL? SINCE WHEN DID YOU EVER CARE?"

Danny's remorse was now turning into annoyance. "I'VE ALWAYS CARED FOR PEOPLE! WHY DO YOU THINK I PROTECT THIS TOWN?"

"YOU NEVER CARED FOR ME!" yelled Valerie. "AND YOU DON'T PROTECT THIS TOWN, YOU'RE JUST LIKE THE OTHER GHOSTS I'VE FOUGHT!"

"I AM NOT LIKE THE OTHER GHOSTS YOU'VE FOUGHT!" he countered back. "Now please...get out of the way!"

"NO!" she screamed, still pointing the gun at him. "I CAN'T TRUST YOU!"

Another lightning bolt flashed the background as the argument continued. "Please, Valerie...I just want to get them to the hospital...they probably don't have a lot of time left..."

"WHAT THE HECK?" she yelled. "WHAT IS SO DAMN IMPORTANT ABOUT HELPING THESE PEOPLE ALL OF A SUDDEN? YOUR GUILT?"

Danny couldn't take it anymore. He had already lost a lot of time, and his patience was thinning.

"FINE!" he yelled. "YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY I CARE SO MUCH ABOUT THESE TWO PEOPLE?"

There was no other way out of this...it was the only way he could make her move...he moved about three feet back from her.

"HERE'S YOUR STUPID ANSWER!" he yelled.

Two blue rings appeared around his waist and he let them travel in the north and south directions over his body...the body suit disappeared, the ghostly D on his chest trading places with a red oval on a white shirt, his blue pants and shoes coming back...his hair and eyes returning to their original color...

Valerie dropped her gun in shock, letting it clank against the ground.

_"Fenton?"_ she said in disbelief. _"I've been fighting...you...the whole time?"_

A million questions ran through her mind...along with a million differrent emotions...she was just too shocked to make any move...

Her best friend? A GHOST?

How was that _possible?_

No...

This had to be some sort of trick...yes...a trick...

But Danny's tears continued flowing...

"I know what you're thinking," he said painfully. "But this is no trick..."

Valerie just continued looking at him, wondering what to do.

_"Now you know...everything..."_ said Danny. _"Now please...move...I just want to get them to the hospital...please..."_

She wasn't sure if she could trust him...but for some reason, she couldn't think of anything else. And behind that mask of hers, anger was dissipating. Sadness was taking its place, as she drooped her shoulders...

Slowly moving aside, she let him pass.

Danny slowly walked pass her and slowly picked up Sam and Jazz. When he was ready, he went ghost again.

It made Valerie flinch.

But before he left, he had one last thing to say.

_"I'm sorry..."_ he said, before he flew off.

And Valerie suddenly found herself all alone again...she wasn't sure what to think...she just couldn't believe that the whole time...she was hunting her best friend...these were her own realities...

What was there left to do?

She looked up at the sky.

Somewhere up in the clouds, the air grew warmer...no longer was there any snow falling over the area...

And as the first few drops fell on her face, she knew the magnitude of everything that had happened...

Nothing but gloom remained as she sadly picked up her gun, and turned homeward...tears streaming down her own face of knowing the truth of her best friend...

But the weather continued in its toll over Amity Park...as the phenomenon through sayings had suddenly become true...

Instead of the light snow, a rain storm had taken its place...

...for no happiness remained...

_A/N: Review, please..._


	12. The Eyes of a Ghost

_A/N: I must start by saying thank you to those people who took the time to read the story and send me great reviews...yes, I know, the chapter before was a huge cliffhanger that left big question marks on the fate on all five main characters in this story, and I'll bet that you're all wondering what happened to them...well, you're about to see in this twelfth chapter, which, I admit, was a bit difficult to write..._

_But before that, I want to say that I have solved a mystery of my own. Once again, I must mention the title, since some of you may have noticed a change in the summary, as it now has more words. If you check it out, the song, entitled "Same Auld Lang Syne," has a lyric (the last one, in fact) that is the title of this story! This one line was in fact the inspiration for this story's title, the reason that I have added that disclaimer. I regret this mistake of mine, and I apologize for not putting that in sooner._

_Another disclaimer before I forget: the song featured in this chapter, "Behind Blue Eyes," is not owned by me, it belongs to Limp Bizkit. The song is in **bold italics.**_

_Here's the next chapter for you...and as a warning, this might be a little depressing to some readers._

_**Chapter 12 - The Eyes of a Ghost**_

_**No one knows what it's like**_

_**To be the bad man,**_

_**To be the sad man,**_

_**Behind blue eyes...**_

It turned out to be a lot harder than he had thought.

_**And no one knows what it's like**_

_**To be hated...**_

Another close call came to Danny, when it involved getting Jazz and Sam _into_ the hospital. When he arrived at the hospital, it wasn't taken very lightly, especially as a ghost holding two unconscious and badly injured girls. Although many people from the staff remembered him from saving the bus that almost careened off the cliff some weeks ago, there were also some people there that still believed he was evil.

_**To be fated**_

_**To telling only lies...**_

He had a hell of a time at the hospital lying to the staff that he was not the one responsible for these girls' injuries. He had a story and a plan figured out, saying that they were in the wrong place at the wrong time, and he was doing their families a favor by checking them in. The hospital accepted them eventually, with a little reluctance, however. Not just for the fact that it was a ghost bringing them in, but also due to the fact that it appeared that he was crying...

After he checked them inside and the hospital informed the girls' parents, Danny flew out of the area and spent the one of the most painful ten minutes of his life away from them. The next phase was that he had to pretend he had just heard about Sam and Jazz's fate as Danny Fenton. It was nerve-wracking, having to do that, especially in the rain.

_"Stupid rain,"_ he thought, as the cold weather threatened him once again.

Why was it raining?

Out of all holidays, it had to rain on Christmas...he did not like that turn of events.

He felt as if the rain were taunting him...telling him that he had screwed everything up...and that it was his punishment...

...and that it was all his fault...

Shoving the thought out of his head, fearing that Spectra could be around to absorb that misery, he decided that enough was enough...the hospital had to know the truth...

An unpleasant feeling ran through him as he decided to fly back and wait inside of the hospital wing to check back on the two girls as Danny Fenton.

But upon his "arrival," he suddenly felt sicker...

His parents were there.

Along with Sam's.

They weren't supposed to find out...they were supposed to be out of town...he started panicking as the hospital explained that it was Danny Phantom that checked them into the hospital. Naturally, both sets parents did not take the news very lightly.

"What do you mean that ghost checked our daughter into the hospital?" echoed the Mansons' voices in Danny's head.

"And what do you mean that the same kid also checked in our Jazz?" chimed in Jack and Maddie, matching the same tones as the Mansons.

When the desk clerk tried explaining that the ghost kid had talked to them first, both sets of parents still had no clue what the clerk was talking about. The hospital now realized that the story was now a fake, due to the fact that both sets of parents had no idea that they were injured in the first place.

Now the hospital was after him as a suspect, because as far as they were concerned, no one had any clue what exactly happened to these two girls and why they were this way. Danny realized he was now in deeper trouble with the law, as he now saw that his plans had miserably failed...

He felt he was screwed even further when both sets of grieving parents turned around and realized he was standing there...

_**But my dreams, they aren't as empty**_

_**As my conscience seems to be...**_

Maddie immediately ran up to her son and scolded him immediately.

"Danny! Where were you when all this started? WHY WEREN'T YOU WATCHING YOUR SISTER? _You should have been taking care of your sister!_"

He could not answer...it would give it all away...he could only shake his head.

Then the Mansons came by. _"WHAT DID YOU DO? DANNY, WHAT IS GOING ON?"_

Danny's emotions grew more prominent as tears welled up in his eyes and he shook his head, signifying he had no clear answer. _"I don't know,"_ he had said.

"Don't you know anything?" asked Sam's mother. "You're her best friend! Shouldn't you know?"

"I had no idea what happened...she wasn't around me..." he said, forcing out another lie.

Before anyone knew what was happening, Sam's dad then pushed by his wife and yelled at him.

_"DANNY! WHY IS MY DAUGHTER HALF-DEAD, AND YOU, OF ALL PEOPLE, HAVE NO IDEA WHY?"_

The teenage boy broke down again at his mercy, saying over and over again, _"I don't know...I'm sorry, I swear, I have no idea..."_

Jack came in Danny's defense, as he positioned himself in the way and started yelling back at him. _"DON'T YOU DARE SPEAK TO MY SON THAT WAY AGAIN!"_

Jack towered over him as he squared up against Mr. Manson...he started cowering.

And it would have stayed that way if Mrs. Manson didn't interfere...

_"This is your son's fault that this happened to our daughter!"_ she screamed.

And this was followed by an entrance by Maddie to defend Jack. _"How do YOU know that Danny did this? He's just a kid!"_

"A kid who was a bad influence on our daughter!" screamed Mr. Manson. "You ghost hunters messed up our daughter's life, and now she's hurt! We should have kept that restraining order on him!"

_"You're just overprotective!" _screamed Maddie. _"And WE can't be blamed for this! You can't blame someone for something they did not do! Danny would NEVER do a thing like this!"_

And all four adults started argued in the hospital lobby at each others' throats...just as security came in to try and settle the dispute by leading all four outside.

Danny, caught in the middle of everything, had to break away from it...it was all too painful to listen to...

_**I have hours, only lonely...**_

Now his parents were involved, and things were a lot worse. It was him in his own world...alone, with his miseries...

Running into a hallway, he took his anger out on yet another wall by punching it repeatedly. The skin on his hand was breaking, as it started to bleed...but he didn't even feel it. His woes were already taking over the creeping pain in his whole body...physical pain didn't seem to affect him, as he started to break down again crying...

He didn't notice the person behind him.

"Geez, and they say that we act childish sometimes..."

Danny spun around.

"TUCKER!" he cried. "Oh, my God!"

A friend...one he needed desperately right now, was standing right in front of him...

All right, so Tucker had crutches...but either way, the fact he was there made no difference at all. He ran up to him immediately, hugged him, and proceeded to cry on Tucker's shoulder, almost knocking him off balance.

_"Tucker..."_ he sobbed, _"you're all right..."_

"OK, this is an awkward day," said Tucker, patting him back. "First some random stranger finds me on the street and takes me here, the hospital finds out that nothing's broken and it's only a sprain, and now my best friend is crying on my shoulder..."

Danny didn't care...he was just to see someone that wasn't yelling at the top of his or her lungs involving him...

Tucker immediately got the message as he consoled his friend. "I know man...I know...parents...they could never understand..."

He pat Danny's shoulder.

_"Jazz..."_ said Danny, letting his voice trail off, as tears formed up again and started falling. _"...tried to help...and Sam..." _It was all he could say.

"I'm sorry..." said Tucker. "I'm so sorry, Danny...there was nothing I could do..."

He half-ghost suddenly pulled away from his friend as some of the sorrow in his voice was replaced by anger.

"I TOLD YOU TWO TO STAY AWAY!" he screamed. "WHY DID YOU COME AFTER ME?" His chest heaved up and down, as if he was going to explode. "WHY?"

Now it was Tucker's turn to ask for mercy.

"I swear, Danny, I tried to keep my promise to you!" said the African-American. "But it all happened so fast that I didn't even know what to do!"

"What is so hard about telling you to STAY?" yelled Danny.

"After you left, Jazz found out that Valerie was after you, so she ran to help you...I couldn't stop her by yelling, so I was forced to run after her, Danny, I was _forced!_ I swear! But when I almost caught up with her, I fell down. Jazz tended to me for a bit, but then she kept running after you."

"But that's just _you..._when does Sam come into the picture?"

"I'm getting there...I thought that I could never catch up, because I couldn't even stand...but then Sam comes running up...I had no idea that she followed me in the first place! I thought she was keeping her word...but she ran up to me...and I told her about Jazz..."

Danny's voice became sotto as the story became clearer. "And then what?"

Tucker paused for a moment, and gulped.

"And then...I said..."

He stopped altogether.

"Tucker?" asked Danny.

He watched as he was at a loss for words...but as he continued watching his expressions, the answer suddenly became clear...

"Were _you..._the one who sent her out after me?"

A long silence followed the question...

...followed by a nod from Tucker.

Danny backed off a step in horror.

Tucker gulped again. "Danny..." he said, matching his friend's sotto tone, "I'm sorry...I swear...I didn't realize this was going to happen..."

Different reactions ran through Danny at once, as he found out the truth...Danny felt like exploding in some form of emotion...Tucker was the one who sent her out...

Rage was building up inside of him...ready to lash out at Tucker...

But he couldn't bring himself to do it...Tucker was his best friend...he really didn't know the magnitude of everything that was going to happen...

Instead of rage, it all went the other way, as he sobbed on Tucker's shoulder once again.

"Oh, God..." said Danny crying, "Tucker, this is all my fault..."

"No, it isn't..." said Tucker, still patting him. "You didn't do this...and I was the one who sent her..."

"Yes, it is my own doing..." said Danny. "You don't understand what happened to me..."

"Yeah," said Tucker, "you had a run-in with Spectra, didn't you, and she did this to Sam and Jazz...you'll get back at her..."

_**My love is vengeance that's never free...**_

Danny turned away in the other direction as his voice rose in volume. "YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! SPECTRA DID NOT DO THAT TO THEM!"

"What?" asked Tucker, confused.

Danny's shoulders drooped.

"Spectra isn't responsible of what happened to Jazz and Sam," he said. He paused to catch his breath before he could muster enough strength to say the next two words.

"I am."

_"You?"_ gasped Tucker.

Danny could already tell that he wasn't expecting anything like that.

"I...I don't understand..." said Tucker.

"Neither did I," said Danny, his head down towards the floor. "But it's true..."

Tucker was in shock about what to say. Different questions rang in his head before he could only settle on one.

"What happened?"

Danny looked up from the floor. "You're not going to like it," he said truthfully.

But when Tucker insisted, Danny told the whole story.

When he had finished, Tucker was speechless.

"But...but...I thought you had gotten rid of that guy!" said Tucker, when he finally found his voice.

"I know," said Danny. "I thought so, too...but apparently I didn't..."

_**No one knows what it's like to feel these feelings**_

_**Like I do**_

_**And I blame you...**_

Danny's eyes watered up again as he then added. "I did everything...it's all my fault..."

"No, it's not..." said Tucker, trying to reassure him, but Danny wasn't buying any of it.

"YES, IT IS!" he exclaimed. "I try saying that to myself, but I know for a fact that I was the one who did this whole mess!"

"But you were forced..."

"...by my own damn anger!" Danny finished for him. "My own feelings...my own decisions...I did EVERYTHING!"

Tucker blinked.

_**No one bites back his heart on their anger**_

_**None of my pain and woe can show through...**_

"STUPID SPECTRA!" screamed Danny. "I had to get tangled up with a ghost that involves _emotion! _And I'm _half-human!_ There isn't a single day where a _human _can't run into some sort of _emotion!_ She's always one step ahead of me, and unless I can control my feelings, there isn't one damn thing I can do!"

"Danny..." said Tucker, reaching out to him. "This isn't _all_ your fault...other sources _made _you feel these feelings...Spectra, for example, the first time around, she was the one who was harping on your abilities in the past...it was her fault there...not yours..."

The half-ghost's voice lowered once again. "But I acted on it..."

Tucker looked down as that truth came to light. "I know..." he said. But then his head rose up once again, his eyes fixed on Danny. "But that's _because _you are a _human_...of course you are going to take offense to it! Something like that is _natural,_ Danny...of course, we are responsible for our emotions, but that's because they are _us._ You cannot blame for something that is a part of yourself..."

Danny looked up at Tucker. This was interesting...

"What you can blame, however, are your actions...though we can't fix an emotion, you can fix yourself to how you act on something...because if you don't know how to act, then there's nothing to live for..."

Danny couldn't believe it...it was as if his sister was speaking through Tucker...he made sure he was listening to all of his words...

"Danny," Tucker said, finishing his speech. "Don't blame yourself...you could not have done all those things yourself...you were put into that situation...it was _not _all of you..."

The half-ghost smiled, as he wiped away a few stray tears. But with his other hand, he gave to signal to high-five.

"Thank you," he said weakly, as Tucker shifted all his balance to one crutch to connect with the hand slap.

"I'm sure Sam and Jazz will wake up soon," said Tucker, desperately trying to cheer up Danny. "And everything will be as it was."

But that statement brought only pain to Danny...because he knew some things Tucker did not know...especially when it involved flying them there in the first place...

Though he didn't want to admit it, things were currently not looking good for Sam and Jazz.

Hiding away his pain, Danny forced out a smile...he shouldn't let Tucker know the hurt he had inside...it would have ruined his speech.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_**But my dreams, they aren't as empty**_

_**As my conscience seems to be**_

_**I have hours, only lonely**_

_**My love is vengeance that's never free...**_

Danny didn't want to go home...to a building where there were parents that were angry at his best friends' parents and blaming him for not looking out for his sister. Even further, they had more suspicion to believe that it was the ghost kid who did this to Jazz...it would have been a horrible place to spend the night.

When everyone left, he decided to wait in the hospital for the news on their conditions in ER.

Danny didn't tell Tucker the whole story for a good reason...both girls were in horrible shape.

At the last checkpoint, he found out that Sam's head had taken more damage then he had thought than just flying glass. Though doctors removed glass particles from Sam's face (a lot of them lodged in difficult spots, but luckily, not her eyes), there was a chance that she might have inhaled some of the particles. Plus, her head had hit the ground hard...meaning it wasn't just his sister who had a head injury. Surgeons had to graft new skin onto her mangled finger. They also had a really hard time with her arm, because instead of a regular break of the bone, it was actually shattered. Her leg suffered the same effects. The thoughts made him twinge with pain.

_**No one knows what it's like to be mistreated...**_

Jazz wasn't doing well herself. Two broken legs to start with became even more complicated when that billboard fell on top of her. There was a large risk that amputation was going to be the answer. Some of the many cuts she received required stitches. And her head...he didn't even want to go there...doctors used numerous stitches in order to close up deep gashes from bits of debris from the falling billboard. There was great fear that she might have had brain damage...

_**To be defeated**_

_**Behind blue eyes...**_

Normally, he was the one who ended up getting the raw end of the deal when it came to these fights...but as he was stronger in ghost mode, he could take the blows a lot better than his mortal form...

He hated knowing that no matter how hard he tried, somehow it was the people he cared about were the ones who would pay...just like the future that almost came to be...

Danny was feeling that familiar pain again...unfortunately, he seemed to be forgetting the entire speech Tucker had given him, as his sorrow started coming back...

It was as if he could feel the pain that both of them were feeling as he imagined himself crashing through a window or having an old billboard fall on top of him...or crashing through the window...and how they must've felt...

A person in white walked up to him. But Danny, lost in his thoughts, did not see nor hear him come up.

"Umm...Daniel Fenton?" asked the person.

Danny looked up. "Huh?"

"Are you Daniel?"

"Daniel?" asked Danny, lost. But then he snapped back into reality. "Oh, Daniel, yes, that's me...I'm sorry...I usually go by Danny..."

"Oh, yes, Mr. Fenton," said the person. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Dr. Alan. I'm the one who helping both Samantha Manson and Jasmine Fenton. I'm sorry, were you in the middle of something?"

"No, I wasn't," said Danny. "I'm listening."

"Are your parents around?" he asked.

Danny shook his head. From what he last heard, both his and Sam's parents were thrown out for causing a large ruckus.

"You can tell me," Danny said.

"Are you sure?" asked the doctor. "I'd actually feel a lot better talking about this with an adult..."

"I'm adult enough," said Danny.

Dr. Alan sighed. "All right, Danny," said Dr. Alan, "because this is quite unfortunate news."

_"Oh, no..."_ thought Danny, as once again, his heart rate took a gigantic leap. He did not like the way that the doctor said the term "unfortunate news..."

In fact, when he last checked, the term "unfortunate" _never_ meant any good news...

"What's wrong?" Danny asked in a sotto tone once again, anticipation killing him.

The doctor sighed once again, as he looked at Danny straight in the eyes.

"I'm sorry to say that Sam and Jazz may not make it..."

The adolescent felt a chill run up and down his spine, as if his world was about to shatter...

_**And no one knows how to say**_

_**That they're sorry**_

_**And don't worry**_

_**How I'm not telling lies**_

The doctor continued. "Sam has inhaled a lot more glass particles than we thought...it would take a miracle to retrieve those from her lungs without extensive surgery...and Jazz has suffered heavy head trauma..."

The doctor paused, sadly watching as the adolescent's head slowly turn down towards the ground.

"...I'm so sorry, Danny..."

Danny was shaking...shaking both with fury at himself and at the world...The doctor's voice seemed to be trailing off into the distance as Danny put his hands to his head.

"No," he said feebly. "No, this can't be..."

This wasn't fair...they couldn't die...they _couldn't!_

Danny's voice came out shaking, like his body. "Is...there..._anything_...y-you can d-do?"

"Well," said Dr. Alan, "I suppose we can continue with the operation...but I must say that chances of success are less than 20 percent..."

No...that wasn't what he wanted to hear...he wanted to hear that they were going to make it...

The stat rang in Danny's head..._a twenty percent chance?_ His greatest fears were coming true...

Dream flashbacks ran through his head...

_"You are responsible for my death...you will pay..."_

"Oh, God..." he said, over and over, tears flowing down...

And he felt himself say it again..."This is my fault..."

The doctor overheard him. "No, it isn't, Danny...you had nothing to do with it..."

Danny pushed away all of his surroundings as he continued talking to himself. _"This is my fault...I should have gotten here earlier..."_

"You didn't bring them here..." said the doctor. "It was that ghost kid that brought them in...and since his story doesn't hold up, we're now keeping a close watch to see if he comes back...don't worry, kid, if you're worried if we'll never catch him, don't worry...we will..."

_Ghost_ kid...

That was him...when would _anyone _understand?

He wasn't trying to hurt people...he was trying to save them...no one understood him...

_"No one..."_ he said, shaking his head. _"No one..."_

He had failed...Sam and Jazz weren't going to make it...he had failed on three things...making people understand that he was a good guy, and on Sam's and Jazz's accounts...

He couldn't do _anything _right...no one was safe with him...

He had to get out of here...away from everyone...no one could be around him...

_**But my dreams, they aren't as empty**_

_**As my conscience seems to be**_

_**I have hours, only lonely...**_

Despite everything that was said to him earlier, he just couldn't handle any of the news he had just heard...it was too much...

Sprinting out of the room in a blind panic of tears, he almost ran into some people along the way...

"No, please! Danny!" screamed the doctor. "Come back here!"

Danny's sense of hearing was completely shut off, as he made his way to the roof...

When he reached the top, the once again fell on his knees in agony...breaking down in the pain that would not go away...

_"How could I let this happen?" _he cried, between sobs and screams of agony. He threw his arms towards the heavens once again as he looked up at it, letting the rain splash against his face.

_"NO!"_ he screamed.

A bolt of lightning answered his cry.

_**My love is vengeance that's never free...**_

Sobbing, his hands went down, hitting the roof of the hospital so that he was on all fours, his tears getting washed away from the endless torrents of raindrops.

Once again, he kept feeling that he couldn't blame anyone else...he could only blame himself...therefore, he could only take out vengeance on himself...

There was something...something he had to do...something that could make the pain go away...no more burdens of human emotion...

No more of this...he was tired of all of this...he didn't want it anymore...Tucker's speech seemed to be drifting out into the past...

There was some place he had to go...some place that he could not be around anyone...

As his head raised, he looked towards the edge of the building...

..._that_ was another place...

Danny didn't know what he was doing, but there was something about that edge that looked so inviting...

Still crying, Danny got up and quietly walked over to the edge, quotes ringing through his head...quotes that he had ignored...quotes that were too late to fix...

_"Please don't do anything like that in the future, Danny...it will lead down a destructive path..."_

_"I know you'll make the right decision..."_

_"You did not do all of these things yourself..."_

When he reached the edge, he peered down. He was hundreds of feet in the air.

He could do it...no more emotions to feel...everything was a mess...

And he would be with them again...perhaps they would meet up with him...they never did anything wrong...

He summed up all of his thoughts into one big cloud, letting flashbacks collect in his head, thinking about his life as it passed him by...everything he had to do, he began to think, was something that could not be done, it was impossible to be carrying all of that weight...people were against him once again, and that was despite all the work it took to get them to trust Danny Phantom...it felt to be some sort of nuisance...it was all for nothing...

This was it...he was going to do it...

He stretched out his arms into his full-length wingspan, into a diving position...

One last tear fell from his eye, as he felt his last emotion take hold of him, felt the last raindrop fall on him, had one last thought...there would be no going ghost to save himself...

That ghost had to die...along with him...

He wasn't doing this because he was depressed…this ghost was also part of the reason…

He took his final breath of air...as he gathered everything up...

...and let himself go from the building.

_**No one knows what it's like**_

_**To be the bad man**_

_**To be the sad man**_

_**Behind blue eyes...**_

_A/N: __I must ask that you send a review..._


	13. The Ray of Light

_**Chapter 13 - The Ray of Light**_

_A/N: Oh man, what to say? I'm sorry for the long update! I could sit here and explain every single event that has happened to me over these past two weeks of leaving you all in suspense, but that would take way too long..._

_This chapter is a bit shorter than the earlier ones, and perhaps for good reason...it has an ending (not the end of the story, of course) that...well...I'll let you read._

_Chapter 13!_

_10 minutes earlier..._

_"I can't believe this..."_

Valerie was sitting in her room, still in shock of all the events she had gone through...

_"All this time...him..."_

None of this was believable...since when was a person half-ghost? She was blinded by the truth...

_"Everything...I...he...AHHHHH! I can't take this anymore!"_

Soon, that truth was too much for her...her fears, her anger...

Everything went out in the wrong direction, as she started taking her frustration on the things in her room.

She turned over a desk that had papers with information of every ghost that she had ever fought, letting them fly all over the room, creating a huge mess...

And when there was nothing left to turn over, she started taking it out on the scientific experiments she had done in order to figure out who the ghost kid was...

Why not? Not like it made any difference anymore...she knew the whole truth, as she flung a jar of ectoplasmic samples across the room, watching it shatter against the wall and splattering its contents everywhere...

Why...?

She ripped up some reports she had typed up...screaming as she did it...yelling obscenities with every single ripping of the sheet of paper...all of this work, for nothing! What she had done with these stupid papers was all answered in a matter of seconds...

_Danny..._

It was him the _whole _time...

She lived a cursed life...she could never have a normal one...

Danny...the ghost kid...

Why Danny? Why did he have to be the half-ghost, her best friend?

Why did he try to befriend her? Why did he ruin everything?

No...he didn't ruin it all...he said it was that dog...but then he could have...no, it made no sense...

_Nothing made any sense!_

It was too much for her. In her rage, she ripped up another picture of Danny in his ghost form...

_"YOU!"_ she screamed, turning the photo into confetti...

There was so much information to sink in...she wanted to blame him for everything that happened to her, after all, he was the one who ruined her...he destroyed her house...that was the reason she wanted to get ghosts...so that people wouldn't have to go through the same thing she went through...

She hated him...she didn't want to have anything to do with him...he was her enemy...

She had to destroy every possible thing there was about him, so that there would be no remorse for his other side, the side that she knew was deceiving her the whole time with this secret that he kept...

Deceit...who knew what he was thinking...probably knew about her all along...was probably waiting for that perfect moment to destroy her...so he could accomplish that task that he had started all that time back...starting with her possessions...

"I..." - she flew another sample across the room - "...HATE..." - she punched the wall, creating a dent inside in its already worn-out state - "YOU!" - she threw one of her weapons against the wall, watching it break into many pieces.

How could he do this to her? Show her his true colors? A person that she had hated with all her heart and trying to destroy for almost a whole year now?

She paused to take a breath from her destruction, breaking down in her state of rage, misery taking over its place, as she curled up into a ball and wept in the middle of her shambled room, hating life and every single turn that it had made her go through...

After weeping, something stuck to her face.

It was another photograph of Danny. But it was Danny in his human form.

Her favorite photo of him...

Rage drove her again as she was about to rip the photo into shreds...

But she had faced the photo the wrong way...the smiling Danny in the middle of the picture seemed to be staring straight at her in the face...

Her hands started quivering as she continued staring at his face, her eyes full of tears filled with the emotions of hate and sorrow...she couldn't do it while he was staring at her...she turned the photo over...

She took one corner and was about to rip it diagonally...

...What was taking so long? She wasn't staring at his face anymore...but her hands were still shaking...

She couldn't do it...instead, she let the photo fall from her hands and wept once again in her hands...

She had two sides of her now...and both were equally losing. She wanted to destroy him, but at the same time, couldn't find the strength to do so, as her own feelings of the Danny she had started to know came rising to the surface...

Someone please...she wanted someone, _anyone,_ to give her a way out, as she bawled uncontrollably...

Why couldn't Danny just _tell_ her? He had all the time in the world in order to tell her that he was this ghost...

And she started arguing with herself again...

_"You know, he probably was meaning to tell you the whole time..."_

_No, he wasn't! He decided that it was time only because he had a perfect reason...in order to extract pity..._

_"YOU ARE SO THICK! LISTEN TO YOURSELF!"_

_What are you talking about?_

_"Have you ever noticed that during your encounters, he wasn't trying to fight you?"_

_Of course he was! Why else would he be around?_

_"You idiot! Will you just listen to me for a second?"_

Listen to herself? _Why would I want to?_

_"So you will remove that stupid mask of yours and finally see the truth! Think about the first fight, the dog! Did it not look like he really didn't have any control over it? Did it not look like they weren't getting along?"_

Hmph...as much as she hated to admit it, that was true...half the time he _was_ screaming while it was dragging him either by the ankle or by a leash he had...

It really did look like he had no control over it...

_"Skulker's Lair! Think about that!"_

Next she thought of the time trapped with him in Skulker's Lair...though they fought a lot during that crisis, in the end, it seemed like they got the idea of teamwork down...

They really were working together...in fact, that was when the truce started, and that quote about all ghosts not being the same...she actually felt some small connection with him...

OK, this was weird...

But then a countering to that argument flashed into her mind. She remembered Pariah Dark...the moment in her head, the stinging moment when he pulled off her mask in front of her father...and also the ending of the truce...

She, of course, hated him for that, but then...

...then...

...hey, wait a minute...

Was that _really_ the end of that truce?

No, it wasn't...in fact, it was just her who decided to end it...because he pulled off her mask...

And he knew her father was in the room, so that he could protect her...

Suddenly, another reason for his stunt came to her head...

It was his way of protecting her...

As harsh as that was, she realized that in those days, she was extremely inexperienced...if she had entered that suit...she had heard that it drained the power of the person wearing it...she could have died within minutes...

The different perspective burning in her head, things were starting to take shape...

No...she couldn't be that blind, could she?

And then that other voice in her head suddenly screamed out, _"And these current fights! What was he saying?"_

Valerie remembered the fights...and finally saw what that half of her mind was thinking about...

Both fights, his hands were in some form of surrendering gesture...and he was trying to coax her out of it the whole time...

She...just never thought about it that way...she assumed it probably just had something to do with the fact that he was just intimidated...

In fact, she was the one who kind of started those fights, in fact, he was just flying overhead, or just fought off some ghost...she had came in, and that was how those fights started...after she yelled at him before he could say anything...

And finally, the truth hit her.

She never really gave him a chance to explain anything...during those times she had fought with him twice this month, he had actually tried to talk to her...

And at the hospital, she was the one who forced him into the decision about choosing someone...between her and Sam.

Valerie then realized her own words...she had called Sam a Goth geek...

If she were looking at herself, even she would have been insulted at that comment...

This whole fault wasn't Danny's after all...she had contributed to it...

She never let him explain...

All this time, when she thought she was fighting ghosts in order to protect this town, she now saw that this was her act of revenge for something that she was blind to...blind to the fact of the truth...

Danny was right...not all ghosts were the same...she was just too idiotic to accept that fact...until now...

Although she was no longer that rich girl she had always wanted to have back, she saw that she still was that girl. She didn't have money, but she still attained those characteristics, the arrogant and extremely self-centered person that she was...but now she hid it all behind a mask...

A stupid ghost-hunting mask she was using to destroy the person that gave her hope for a new life...

Danny, the person behind the ghost...

What had she done? Her anger...it consumed her from everything...except the truth...

And as the ray of truth finally set inside of her, she started crying again, but now for a different reason, the reason that she had just thought up...

Her curse wasn't Danny...

...it was her own arrogant ways...she saw that she really was pretty bad back then...and it took everything she owned before she finally saw the light...and Danny was the one, though indirectly (and accidentally), the one who got her to take a better glance at herself...

Danny really was there for her, whether or not he was that ghost...

_"Oh, my God..."_ she thought, _"...it really was me...I drove him to a lot of this..."_

Everything had led up to this...if they didn't have this fight...he wouldn't be the one grieving for Sam and Jazz right now...they would have been safe...but instead, this fight drew them to that area...and that's when it happened...

It was already too late to take it back...the damage had already been done...

But her mind had other plans.

_"You can apologize..."_

What? Apologize? What good would that do?

_"Hey, Danny, listen, I'm sorry I never listened to you and that Sam and Jazz are almost dead. Can we still be friends?"_ Even just thinking that up sounded stupid...he'd probably just blast her with one of his rays...

_"Speak with the heart..."_

The heart? What did that mean?

_"You'll know...you will eventually know what to do..."_

But she was still scared...what would she say? In fact, how would she do it?

Explain that she was too thick to let him say anything? Explain that she...

No...forget the questions...none of that mattered anymore...she finally knew what she had to do...she just hoped that it wasn't too late to start...

She donned her ghost hunter suit and jumped out the window, the jetsled coming out of her shoes...

She started in the direction of the hospital. She didn't care if he never forgave her...she just had to tell him what she finally saw...and that she would be willing to do anything to set things on the right track...

It seemed like it was taking forever to get there...after all, the rain was completely blocking her vision...the howling wind kept throwing her off course...but she would stop at nothing in order to set everything straight...to clean up from the mistakes in the past...

To set a course for a better future...

Finally, she saw the hospital in sight...it was just as gloomy as ever, since the last time she visited it...

But that was strange, since when was there an extra antenna on the roof? In fact...it looked a lot different than the other ones...it looked like it was moving...

That didn't look like an antenna at all, actually...

And then, her heart stopped as she took a second look...

That wasn't an antenna...that was a person...about to jump off...

And then her heart went from no beats to a heart attack...and the blood through it ran cold...

It wasn't just any person...that was...

"OH, MY GOD, DANNY!" she screamed...

He was about to kill himself!

_"But why would..." _she began, but then another horrible mind came to her head...

Sam and Jazz...they might...have been...

_"Oh no,"_ she said. _"I'm sorry, Danny..." _she said. Sam and Jazz were gone...and now he was taking it out on himself...

She started to cry...however, she remembered something, as her heart beat faster...

Looking back down, her worst thoughts imaginable took place...

Danny had already jumped off...

"NOOO!" she screamed. "DANNY!"

Increasing the speed of her jetsled, she flew as fast as she could to catch him...

_"Please..."_ she begged. _"Let me catch him!"_

He was nearing the ground...but she was also nearing him...she could make it...

"DANNY!" she screamed.

She reached with a desperate hand to grab his before it fell out of reach...

...But his hand slipped through her fingers...

"Oh, no..." she said, as she missed. "NOOO!"

She watched helplessly from above as Danny's body fell into a rose bush, which deflected him back towards the wet grass, sprawled face-up.

He wasn't moving.

_"NO!" _she yelled out, flying down towards him.

He was a wreck...after falling on the rose bush, it completely tore up his clothing and he was covered in cuts and bruises...

No...he couldn't die...Valerie went next to him and tried calling out to him...

_"Danny? DANNY? Can you hear me, Danny? Please! Show me any sign! PLEASE!"_

After what seemed like years, there was no response...fearing his death, she fell towards the ground next to him, sobbing.

But as she did so, she found something...

His hand...it was raising!

_"Danny..."_ she said, her voice quavering and her heart beating quickly, _"Oh, my God...your hand...it moved...please, show me you're all right...oh God, this is all my fault...I did this to you..."_

His fingers on his hand abruptly started slacking down...he was losing it...

"I'M NOT GIVING UP HERE, DANNY!" she screamed. "FIGHT, DANNY!"

But Danny remained silent...she was about to throw her head down into her own hands...until she realized something else...

His eyes...they were open!

Her heart skipping a beat, she automatically threw herself in his line of sight, praying he wasn't what she thought he was...

The ghost hunter suit disappeared, so she could she him more clearly...

_"DANNY!" _she screamed. _"Can you hear me? Please! Say something!"_ Her tears fell down as she shivered both from the cold and nervous anticipation.

She watched as his mouth opened, trying to form some word around it...it looked like he was struggling with it...

_"...V-v-v-Val?"_ she heard him say, in a voice so faint that she could barely hear him.

_"Danny?"_ she said, with the same whisper, holding her breath...

_"Val..." _he said again, but with less strength and sign of life showing...

Valerie was shaking and crying. _"Danny? Don't worry...you're going to be all right..."_

But she could sense the doubt in her own voice...

Danny tried to say something again, but she watched as he couldn't find the strength to do so...instead of attempting to say something, his body did something else, as his eyes started rolling backwards in his head...

Valerie watched the event in horror, as she watched his breathing suddenly slow down...

...soon Danny lost his consciousness, and his eyes closed altogether.

_"No..."_ she said, watching them close. _"NO!"_

She tried giving him encouragement. _"Danny...hold on, you have to hold on...please...don't leave!"_

Danny's arm, the one that had tried to reach for the light, suddenly went slack.

_"NO! DANNY!"_ she screamed. _"NO! YOU'RE NOT DYING ON ME!"_

Valerie's hands went towards his shoulders and violently shook him, as if trying to extract any sign of life that could be within him. When he failed to respond, her hands lost their grip on his shoulders as her head fell on top of his chest, proceeding to cry over his body.

_"DANNY!" _she screamed. _"YOU CAN'T GO LIKE THIS! PLEASE, BE ALIVE!"_

She felt his heart...it was extremely faint...and it was only getting slower.

_"NO, DANNY, PLEASE!" _she screamed, violently shaking him again. _"DON'T LEAVE!"_

She felt his pulse again.

But now there was no heartbeat...

Lying across him again, she acted like a shield sheltering his lifeless body from the rain, crying over the one thing that she had a chance to set right...but she had waited too long, and now he was gone.

_"Danny..."_ she repeated through tears, over and over, _"I'm so sorry...oh my God...what did I do?"_

As her tears fell, however, they were lost, mixing with the surrounding rain, getting washed away...and her cries of agony were drowned out by the thunder and lightning that flashed overhead...

She had failed...but no one would know it...

Because no one could hear her at all...in fact, there was a good reason no one could hear her...

At that exact moment, one thing was said which stopped everything altogether...

_**"TIME OUT!"**_

_A/N: Yes, unfortunately, from one cliffhanger to the other...I'm sorry!_


	14. One Makes a Difference

_**Chapter 14 - One Makes a Difference**_

_A/N: Wow...I really got mixed reviews for the last chapter...(I was just reading them). Oh well, I guess that if I decide to take a risk in some certain direction, an author is bound to end up with things like that..._

_Thanks for the reviews...seriously, they make any author's day worthwhile._

_Chapter 14 has arrived!_

The ray of light was fading fast from his line of vision, as he screamed out her name from the shadows as he was traveling backwards...

"VALERIE!"

But it was already too late...Danny was falling...falling into another life...

The light of the world had completely disappeared from sight now...he was reaching, grabbing, but there was no use...he had already separated from his body...the one that Valerie had finally came to know...

He was aghast...in her face, he could see the truth that had been placed inside of her...

It was what he had always wanted...but he would never reach it...

Because of the choice he had made...

He never thought that this would never happen...but now it was, and he would never end up living it...

It was all hopeless...this was the decision he had made...

There was no reversing it.

He closed his eyes...he might as well just be surprised from the place he'd end up...it was going to be the Ghost Zone, most likely...he just wanted it to be quick...

However, something was wrong...it seemed that the wind passing by his face suddenly stopped...

...In fact, he was...

...breathing?

He opened his eyes. First, he experienced confusion.

Then as things became clearer, there was even more confusion...

There was a medallion around his neck...

_"But that means..."_

He frantically searched around...but he didn't see any sign of him until...

"You know what, Danny?" someone said behind him. "Even I don't believe that it was a wise decision on your part..."

Danny turned around, finding himself in front of none other than Clockwork himself, currently in the state of a young boy. Danny could see that he was smiling, but he didn't know whether or not that meant something good...

Either way, it did not matter. Danny was still shocked as switched glances from the medallion to Clockwork. He did not expect that it would be the same ghost that would end up helping him again anytime soon.

"Clockwork..." said Danny, shaking a bit. "I-I don't know what to say..."

Clockwork's appearance changed to an adult as he started to speak. "Yes...a loss for words...it was just as I had expected it to be. Finally, as your last breath comes out, you find something that you have always been trying to find - another person that you can call a friend."

"I didn't know..." said Danny. In fact, he seriously did not know that this was going to happen...whoever thought that Valerie would come to her senses like that?

Because of the differences between them, he usually had that old adage in mind, believing that she'd find out about his secret "over his dead body." But he had never meant for it to be literal.

"Would you mind me asking why you attempted this stunt?" asked Clockwork.

"I thought you knew this was going to happen," said Danny. "Isn't that why you stopped me?"

"Yes, I knew that this was going to happen...though I may know many things, many times I cannot come up with intentions...though I control time, I cannot control thoughts."

"Then you may have realized it by now..." said Danny, letting his voice trail off. "I did this because of Sam and Jazz..."

He turned to face him. _"Why?"_ he asked. "Why did you stop me?"

"I suppose that this question could be answered with a question," said Clockwork. "Why did you decide to jump off?"

Danny was a bit hesitant on telling the truth, but he knew that it couldn't be hidden any longer.

"I couldn't see a future without Sam and Jazz..." he said. "I felt so helpless...I couldn't think of anything else..."

"No future?" asked Clockwork. "I must say, things might be a bit backward in that mind of yours."

"What do you mean?" asked Danny.

"Such a cruel thing, the flow of time..." said Clockwork, answering his question in a different manner. "Like a chain of dominoes, people realize that what they do in the past could greatly alter the future, leading to results unimaginable..."

It was then the Master of Time waved his hand and showed Danny a vision.

The vision was Amity Park...or what was left of it. Danny saw endless fires raging across the town, crying citizens begging some ghosts for mercy, some citizens forced into slavery, and feeble attempts at fighting back. The screams of torment...the endless misery...it was all hard to watch.

He looked around for Fentonworks...it had been reduced to ashes.

And speaking of misery...it was then Danny saw the background. Amity Park was now entirely within the Ghost Zone...it was like they were cut off from the rest of the world.

There was some dark spirit in the background, who watched over them like the town was now under his rule...but he could not see the face. It was completely surrounded by shadow.

"Is this...the future?" asked Danny.

"If things continue going on as they currently are, yes...this is the future." said Clockwork, his form now changing into an old man.

But Danny saw something. "Wait a minute...I know this is the future, but..."

He stopped to take a quick breather. The new information took a great deal of time to sink in before he could finish it.

"...where am I?" he finished. "I know that I may be gone here...but my ghost...it has to be around here somewhere..."

"Something happened to your ghost," said Clockwork. "All I can say is that the results aren't very much to your liking..."

Clockwork frowned, as he shut the vision out. "Some things, Danny, are better left unsaid..."

This statement left Danny in mystery...what did he mean by that? Danny felt exactly like the time that the futuristic Vlad had almost told him about what happened to his human half beforehand...

The idea finally struck him...the dark spirit in the vision...

Was that...?

Clockwork interrupted his thoughts as his form changed once again, back into a young boy. "Your decision to take a dive will eventually result in disaster for the rest of the town...no one else could have filled in your spot."

"But there are many people who could have!" said Danny. "Take Valerie..."

"During a raid of their home, she was captured by ghosts and was neither heard from or seen again..." said Clockwork.

Danny tried again. "I taught Tucker how to fight a bit..."

"Tucker was captured and became a slave...he currently can't do a thing..."

"The rest of the students?" asked Danny. "I taught them all something when Youngblood captured all of the parents for his ghost ship..."

"All of them...captured..." said Clockwork. "They couldn't last.

Now he was becoming fearful...there couldn't be something of this kind of magnitude...there had to be some people that had tried...

And his mind fell on two very likely candidates.

"My parents?" Danny asked, trying to buld up confidence. "Surely they could have done something..."

"Oh, yes...your parents..." said the Master of Time, his outward appearance changing into an adult once again. "Yes...they fought bravely...they set up a small army to try and combat the onslaught of ghosts."

Danny's eyebrows raised, but unfortunately, Clockwork was not finished.

"But they too, I'm sorry to say, met their end after a while, when the ghost shield around their residence shorted out and were prone for easy capture..."

And the final layer of defense shattered his hopes.

He couldn't believe it...even his parents...

Danny could almost feel a tear falling down his face...if he _had _the ability to cry.

"_No one_ was able to do anything about it?" asked Danny.

"The absence of you leaves a bad vision in the future," said Clockwork. "Yes, your parents could be trained ghost hunters with the greatest equipment, but you are one of a kind."

"What's that?" asked Danny, his head coming up. "One of a kind?"

"Only you..." said Clockwork, his form now an old man. "As a half-ghost, it was only you that could develop strategies to your fights. Take Walker, for example. As a human in the Ghost Zone, you were able to escape easily because you were no longer ghost, but human..."

_"That was true,"_ thought Danny.

"One person can make a difference, Danny. The question is, are you willing to accept this fact, or let things continue this way?"

"I don't know..." Danny started to say, but was interrupted.

"I am here not just to change your decision, but to _ask_ that you change it," said Clockwork. "Gaining Valerie as a friend was a change that you wanted, right? And I could pretty much sense without a doubt that you didn't like what I just showed you..."

It was true that he never wanted anyone to be hurt under his expense...committing suicide - after what he saw and heard, there was going to be a lot more damage than to his own self. He started thinking about letting Clockwork return him to his own time...

...but something held him back.

Two things, actually.

"But..." said Danny. "Sam and Jazz...are...they going to..."

"I cannot say," said Clockwork, changing into his boyish form again. "There's only one way that you can find out the answer to the question...and that is for me to send you back."

But this was now a lot harder...Danny felt himself caught by his emotions.

"But I have to know," said Danny. "I can't...if they're going to..."

"If you don't do something Danny, then there isn't going to be a future!" said Clockwork, his voice absolutely firm. "Sometimes, if things reach some certain magnitude, I'm afraid that there are some things that will have to be let go."

This quote was quite surprising to Danny. This was the same ghost that told him that his noble efforts for trying to save the people he cared about were to be rewarded with another chance...not that he would have to let go of them...

Letting go of Sam and Jazz...it seemed like an impossibility, and he closed his eyes.

Especially since there were those hugs...he could never let go of those, notably all those quotes that were still ringing in his head...

But then...there was that future...

Like a game of tug-of-war, he struggled to come up with a decision. In his mind, he was the rope, his body in the middle of the game itself. On one side he was holding onto Sam and Jazz, and on the other side pulled the rest of Amity Park. He was allowing himself to be pulled in their direction, looking at their faces, as if it were to be the last time that he would see them. But then the other side held even more forlorn faces...the ones that would be killed if he decided the other direction. It was only two versus thousands, but it was hard...

Both had legitimate reasons for winning, but once again, he found it impossible to make a choice...every person had some sort of quote that he remembered far back in the past, and had never surfaced until then...it seemed to just be a sea of voices that he could not understand...

But then something that Danny had never expected to happen occurred, however...

Sam, in his visions, spoke one of the quotes that he was suddenly remembering through flashbacks...

"_We're just looking out for you, Danny. It doesn't matter what happens to us. If all else fails, _you_ are the one that has to go on...not us..."_

After she said that, everything else seemed to be zoning away...soon it was just the two of them...talking with each other no longer through flashback, but through an actual conversation.

_"Please, Danny...let go of my hand..."_

He seemed to be arguing with her. _"But...I can't..."_

Sam spoke softly again. _"Please...Danny...you cannot let that future happen...just please, my hand, let it go..."_

_"I can't let you go..."_ said Danny, trying to strengthen his grip.

_"If you hold back, everyone loses..."_ she said. _"Please...let me go..."_

_"But...I...can't!"_ He seemed to be trailing off because he almost said the secret he had been keeping...but he could almost feel it coming out into the surface...

And the haunting reality...Sam seemed to know.

_"Danny..."_ she said, _"...don't let your feelings get in the way...just...do it..."_

He couldn't believe it...those were words that he had not expected...

But though he didn't expect them, it seemed to be some sort of turning point...as he changed glances from his hand to her face...

Danny seemed to be having some sort of breakdown, as his tears fell down his face again. Gradually, his grip on her hand seemed to loosen with every second that passed...as it loosened, he watched her face, watching as her own complexion became saddened, watching their connection come apart. It felt as if he was letting Sam die with every passing.

_"Let go...just let it go..."_

One would say that it would take all strength to hold onto something, but it was quite the opposite for Danny, as his grip slowly relinquished from Sam's hand. Letting Amity Park win, he watched as Sam's and Jazz's faces slowly drifted away into darkness...his heart seeming to go along with them.

When he opened his eyes again, his vision came out blurry. Touching his face, he could feel specks of water on his cheeks.

So he _did_ have the ability to cry, even if he was a spirit...

But facing Clockwork again, who had now changed form once again to his adulthood, he spoke out his decision, though he could feel some stomach pain as he did so.

"It seems you had a rough time there, said Clockwork, watching him sadly. "Did you make a decision?"

"Yes...take me back," he said. "I can't let that future occur..."

"Are you sure? Remember, once you have a say, there is no turning back..."

Danny could picture Sam and Jazz in his mind once again, but he knew that he couldn't hold back on that...

"Yes," he said. "I'm sure...please...just make it quick..."

The Master of Time smiled, as he pressed a button on his staff. Suddenly, thousands of clocks surrounded them as the dark tunnel slowly melted away, starting to change their surroundings back to Amity Park.

When he could almost make out the sky, Clockwork said one last thing before he disappeared. "And this is where I take my leave, Danny...I promise you...all things will be answered in due time...just remember...even if the odds seem impossible, some things have the uncanny ability to work in that favor...some people deserve a third chance at something, so why can't you?"

The odds? _"Wait a minute..."_ he thought, as things started piecing together like a large jigsaw puzzle. _"Odds...Dr. Alan...Sam's and Jazz's surgeries..."_

...impossible odds...but...did that mean...?

But before Danny could point it out, it was already too late...Clockwork was already disappearing from sight.

And with a wink, a clock face appeared in front of the Master of Time, and when the hands completed one revolution around him, he was gone.

Before Danny knew it, he was traveling swiftly in another direction...the sudden jerk caused him to scream as he flew backwards, through a realm with clocks running backward...

As soon as it started, however, everything came to a sudden halt, and his world was in total blackness...

Blackness?

Where was he? He tried moving, but for some reason, couldn't.

Something heavy was on top of his chest...it seemed to be focusing on some heartbeat...

And as his surroundings became clearer, he suddenly gained the rest of his senses...as he now realized where he was.

His eyes could barely make out the familiar light that he saw before he had left. His ears picked up the sounds of crying. He could smell the fragrance of some sort of flower bush nearby. He could feel the wet grass against his backside and the drops of water splashing against his face. Some of the water from the rain found its way into his mouth, which tasted pure.

He was alive in Amity Park...back in his body, with Valerie crying atop him.

And that crying slowly dissolved, and then finally stopped, when she realized that his eyes were open...

_A/N: The bad news...yes, this is another cliffhanger. But the good news is...I've finally gotten through the hardest part in the story! I have a clear picture in my head now upon how this is going to end, so instead of these long update waits, there will definitely be a difference in the waiting period between chapters._

_Send a review, please (or a complaint for putting you through another cliffhanger, LOL). But remember, please, no flames._


	15. The Heart of the Matter

_A/N: I really don't have much to say except thank you for waiting. It's cool to know that I'm yet to hear someone getting pissed off because of that little promise I haven't been able to keep ever since I made it way back in the second chapter. I apologize for the long wait as of this point - I've recently gotten over a really bad stomach virus._

_Disclaimer: Title based off a lyric by Dan Fogelberg. I got tired ofthis being in the summary..._

_You came here to read, didn't you? Excuse me while I let the fifteenth chapter take over my notes..._

_**Chapter 15 - The Heart of the Matter**_

The last thing Valerie had remembered was that she was sheltering her best friend's fallen body from the rain...

But then there was something she was sensing, or rather, two things she was sensing.

For one, it felt as if the deluge had subsided a bit...sure, it was still thundering, and it was raining with an intensity that she hadn't experienced in a while, but for some reason it didn't seem to have the same force as before...

The second sensing, however, seemed like an impossibility altogether...in fact, she didn't even recognize it at first, but then it became absolutely unmistakable.

Valerie felt the faint beating of Danny's heart...

_What?_

She wasn't sure about what was happening...or rather, she had no idea...

...he had fallen from over 100 feet...no one could survive a fall like that...

...as much as she wanted this to be, this couldn't be possible...this _wasn't_ possible...he wasn't...?

Slowly, her head turned toward Danny's face...and the impossible had occurred...

Her own heart racing, she let out a strangled gasp and put a hand to her mouth, as her green eyes locked with his open blue ones.

_"Danny...?"_ she whispered, wondering if this was actually happening. _"Oh my God...Danny?"_

He tried to speak, but finding no strength to do so. Instead, he acknowledged her quiet whispers with a slight smile.

It was more than enough. The girl lifted the top half of his body from the ground and basically cut off his breathing with a bear hug. "DANNY!" she screamed, but at the same time, filled with some leftover sorrow. _"Danny...you're alive...I can't believe it...YOU'RE ALIVE!"_

A searing pain flew through Danny from not only the hug, but from the endless cuts and bruises he had received earlier from the rose bush he had previously fallen onto. He knew he must have damaged one of his shoulders, as well...

Valerie wasn't helping the situation at all, as she was currently cutting off his oxygen supply and also irritating the wounds...

"Valerie..." he choked out, trying to breathe. "...yes...OK...nice..." He gasped, trying to recover oxygen. "...please..._I can't_..._breathe..._"

She continued the death hug. "You're alive..."

And Danny found his strength. Though it was really painful, he found the ability to move his arm into a position to support himself.

As he did this, however, it was like Valerie's excitement suddenly and completely turned back into sorrow as her hug loosened a bit from Danny's chest. She then started crying on his shoulder...which happened to be the damaged one.

And it stayed that way for about thirty seconds. It was just them, in the middle of the rain, wondering who was going to make the first move or statement. No one seemed to be doing anything.

That was, until Valerie started speaking in a different tone.

_"...What was wrong with you? Why did you do this to me?"_ she said, breaking down on him.

She leaned more weight onto his shoulder, as her tears fell at a faster rate.

_"What possessed you to...? ...Why did you...? How could you...?"_ She was so upset that she couldn't finish her sentences.

_"I'm sorry..."_ he tried saying, but it didn't seem to be of any use. She just fell into an even worse form of shock as she continued crying.

More pain, both physical and emotional, continued flooding into his system. But soon enough, Danny found the strength to finally place his good arm around her shaking, rain-drenched body, consoling her.

_"...It's OK, Valerie...it's OK..."_

Valerie's sobs stopped abruptly once again as she looked at his arm, and then repeated his words.

"It's OK?" she asked, lifting her head and facing him. "Just like that, out of the blue, _it's OK?_"

Before Danny knew it, she left his side, causing him to lose support. He fell backwards on the grass once again, a bit stunned. Forcing himself up with his miserable arms (which hurt like hell), he turned around as he watched her walk to a spot some ten feet away.

It was then she showed her true colors of the situation.

_"IT'S OK? Why the HELL did you decide to jump off a building like that? You thought that was **OK? **Why did you do that to me?"_

He should have known that this was coming...

"Valerie, I didn't know..."

"It's OK that I finally know that you're that half-ghost that ruined my life? It's OK that I find out that you were attempting suicide by jumping off that damn building that I spent one miserable week in? It's OK that I was crying over your what-I-thought-was dead body, and suddenly you come back to life? You expect me to believe that everything's OK?"

"Valerie..." Danny said, trying to stand, but couldn't find the ability to do so. "I'm sorry..."

_"YOU'RE SORRY?"_ she exclaimed. "You're _only _sorry for doing one of the most stupid things I have ever seen in my life? Do you have _any_ idea how much I felt, watching you fall from that height, and me, trying to catch you before you fell, just to miss?"

"You don't understand..."

"YOU'RE the one that doesn't understand!" she yelled, now in hysterics. "Everything you did...every lie, every action, every method of deceit I can ever think of...when I saw you, sprawled face-up after you hit the ground...I couldn't believe that all of this was connected to you! You were that person! The one enemy I had...the one friend I had...the one person that meant everything to me...the one person I wanted to kill day after day..._everything! It was all you, falling from over 100 feet, hitting the rose bush...lying there, UNCONSCIOUS!"_

She turned away from him, crying harder than ever as the rain continued to fall.

"Things are _not_ OK, Danny!" she yelled. "I don't even know who you _are_ anymore! I can't believe that _every single day_, it was you that -"

"It was me? What did I have to do with this?" he said, cutting her off.

"YOU were the one that destroyed everything!" she yelled. "And _you_ were the one that I could ever trust! And lastly, this has hurt me the most! YOU were the one that had to come to the top of this building and jump off of it..."

"SAM AND JAZZ WERE CLOSE TO DEATH!" he somehow yelled, cutting her off.

Surprised by his sudden outburst, she turned in his direction.

"IS _ALL_ THE BLAME ON _ME_? DON'T YOU _EVER _CONSIDER OTHER THINGS? LIKE _YOU, _FOR EXAMPLE?"

Valerie, still stunned, could not answer.

"THAT'S THE DAMN PROBLEM WITH YOU! YOU _NEVER_ LET PEOPLE SHARE THEIR SIDE OF THE OPPOSITION! IT'S ALWAYS YOU! DO THINGS ALWAYS HAVE TO BE CENTERED ON _YOU_?"

It took a lot of energy for Danny to say that. His voice was struggling through that mess, and it seemed to have exacerbated the pain within him.

His anger rose a bit as he somehow transformed into Danny Phantom, making Valerie twitch again.

"Do you think I've always meant to keep this from you? Did you _ever_ consider how much pain that _I_ felt, having to keep this secret day after day? And it was _especially_ to you?"

Valerie wanted to say something in retortion herself, but remained silent as Danny continued yelling.

"I never wanted any of this to happen...I never meant for that ghost dog to come barging in on your father's work and completely destroy everything in sight...I _absolutely,_ without a doubt, regret that one day of my life! _Nothing_ that happened to you was _any_ of _my_ fault! What _I_ tried doing was controlling it, but that stupid dog was too strong! It destroyed _everything _in its path to find a stupid toy, which happened to be in an old dog kennel at Axion, your father's work!"

"I was hoping that you'd keep an open mind to everything, but you _never_ gave me any of that! You wanted to _kill_ me, that very _minute_ you knew of my existence, just because _I_ happened to be the one that_ you_ saw! For months after that, I had seriously been wishing that I had never gone after that dog at all! All of this probably would have never happened!"

"And I hated you!" he continued yelling. "You were that same girl in the beginning that was always proud and arrogant when you were rich, but now that you were poor, I'm yet to see some sort of difference! Sure...one time I liked you...but then you show me these colors that I've been yet to see during these past weeks! It was like freshman year _all over again!_"

Unable to stop himself, Danny then flew right in front of her. "IN FACT, THIS IS WHAT _YOU_ WANT, RIGHT? YOU'VE ALWAYS BEEN AFTER ME, SO HERE'S YOUR FREE SHOT! GO AHEAD!"

He planted his feet on the ground and outstretched his arms to the sides, leaving himself vulnerable.

"C'MON, VALERIE!" he said, seeming to egg her on. "GO AHEAD! TAKE THAT GUN OUT OF YOUR POCKET! TAKE YOUR SHOT!"

Valerie could only stare at him. It was what she always wanted...to get the number-one enemy on her list...and he was right in front of her, waiting to be blown to bits...

But that person was Danny...the person she had feelings for...

Struggling...struggling...the two oppositions trying to win over the other, but everything ended in a stalemate.

Instead, she just backed away in fright, scared of anything that he could do to her...

The spirit in her fighting had currently vanished. Only her fears remained. No tears, no anger, no desire to destroy...

Only fear.

And those fears were all directed towards one person - Danny.

She never thought that it would be herself taking the retreat when they got face-to-face. But because of everything else she currently knew, she found herself powerless and fearful...she lost the strength to do anything else.

Sensing her anxieties, Danny decided that he'd gone a little far. Letting the ghost form disappear behind his humanity, he felt the horrible pain rising through his body again in his mortal form. He dropped to the ground on all fours, still unable to stand.

But the eye contact never changed - a thin line that seemed to connect their eyes, as Valerie's retreat came to a slow stop.

Another silence followed, as they just continued staring at one another. It was like a stand-off, but both sides were equally losing. Both were already stricken with some sort of emotion, and it had already worn each of them down.

He broke the silence as he talked about the original subject.

"I cared about them," he continued, his own voice parched from yelling, and now starting to go shaky. "Listening to the doctor's speech upon how they only had a twenty percent chance shot at life...it was too much for me...and my parents fighting with Sam's parents...they were already angry at me because I failed to watch over Jazz..."

His head hung down as he broke off the line of sight with his alter-ego semi-arch nemesis.

"Don't tell me I don't understand," he said. "You had _no_ clue what it was like, having all the damn answers to all the panicking questions around me, and having to keep it all in!"

He paused for a second more, then stated quite clearly, "Sometimes...I feel like I'm _my own enemy..._I can never find a break anymore...it's as if I'm doomed even before I start..."

A teardrop fell from his eye as he continued supporting his upper body with his arms. It was as if he couldn't feel them anymore because he was so cold. His entire body seemed to be numbing with exhaustion.

And he didn't seem to care anymore. Whatever she was going to do, whether it was take out her gun and blow his head off, or walk away from him, he just awaited her reaction.

But he had one last thing to say. _"Please listen_...if there's any part of you that is listening to me..." he said. "I'm sorry for all the things that happened...but I had to tell you...that's my side of the story..."

And with a slight pause, he added, "...just, whatever you do...make it quick..."

Perhaps returning wasn't a good idea...what was she going to do?

It remained silent for a few moments as he glanced up to see Valerie still standing in her spot, almost ashen white from the ordeal...he had no clue what she was thinking.

His stomach did a nasty flip-flop as he watched her move her arm and reach into her pocket...

Danny broke off his glance again and looked down on the ground, another tear falling. That pocket was one of her favorite spots to hide one of her guns...

He listened to her footsteps on the wet grass...she was coming closer...

Then came the surprise. Valerie had knelt beside him, and started using the object she had taken out of her pocket on the corner of his eye.

It was a handkerchief.

"No...Danny...don't be sorry..." she said, resting her palm on the teen's shaking back.

He raised his head. _"What did she say?"_

Though she didn't repeat what he wanted to hear, he completely forgot the question by the time she made her second move.

When they made eye contact again, it lasted for less than two seconds. It was because Valerie suddenly threw her arms around him again, starting to cry once more on his throbbing shoulder.

"I'm the one that should be sorry," she said through tears. "I never listened to you...I'm so sorry..."

Unable to understand his current situation, and a bit surprised from the current revelation, Danny put his arm back around her and leaned in closer.

_"I'm sorry about Sam and Jazz...I'm sorry I never listened...but I hate you for jumping off..."_ she kept saying over and over again. It was as if she couldn't help it.

"Yes..." he said, his own voice trailing off. "I was dumb...I'm sorry...it was stupid..."

_"There are some other people, you know..."_ she said, finally letting go of words and only sobbing. _"Others..."_

"I know...there are others..." he said, letting her cry.

And once again, nothing else happened between them. Valerie was sobbing on Danny's shoulder and he was doing his best to console her.

At the same time, he was wondering how he was ever going to explain it all...

But one thing was for sure...Danny knew things would never be the same again. There were so many things to tell...

For a time, Danny believed they were alone outside...

Little did he know...they weren't.

Someone was watching them...a forgotten figure...

And laughing, the figure flew out into the open and just stared at them for a long time, before she finally spoke.

"Oh _please..._" said the one watching. "Can you two get _any sappier?_ You're making me sick! But then again, that may be good for me!"

Distracted, Danny and Valerie looked up.

Flying above them was Spectra...in a very young form.

"You!" cried Danny. "Not you again!"

"What can I say?" said the ghost of misery. "I just never seem to go away...like those burning emotions of yours!"

Valerie started screaming. "WHO'S THAT?" she yelled, amidst her frightened wails.

"The biggest headache I've ever had so far," Danny responded, breaking away from Valerie. "She's been the main reason every single kid around Amity Park seems to have a never-ending depression following them around. She feeds on teen misery...she fed on yours...she is the reason you ended up in the hospital that one day..."

_"Misery?"_ asked Valerie, quickly putting two and two together. "Misery...glowing green..." Then she turned in the ghost's direction. _"Then that was YOU! You're the one that's been telling me that Danny's no longer my friend!"_

"Well," said Spectra, "there had to be _some way_ that I had to get that out of you...but it was a legitimate reason for doing so, wasn't it?" She laughed again.

Danny looked at Spectra with all the ferocity he currently held. Spectra was one of the main reasons that everything was currently out of order...the one who riled up Valerie and attacked all the kids at the school...

And the one who forced his evil half out into the open...

Tucker was right...even if it was himself that let his anger take control, there wasn't really anything he could do about it. Human emotions were inescapable...Spectra just had to find some way of harping on them.

And that was even if it led to disastrous results. In his mind flashed Sam's and Jazz's smiling faces...and he was still trying to work out the clue that Clockwork had given him.

But he did know that there was one thing...there was time to set things right again.

And the first thing he had to do was to get rid of this ghost.

Rolling out of the way of one of Spectra's hand blasts, Danny yelled to Valerie, "Run! Get out of here!"

"No!" she cried, running over to him. "You're already injured! And she...!" she said, acknowledging Spectra, _"...she_ was the one who did most of this..."

"You can't..." said Danny. "Sam and Jazz are already on my conscience...and I'm _not_ adding a third! You're not fighting her...you haven't faced her before!"

"No way am I letting you face that ghost alone!" said Valerie.

"But - " Danny started to say, but was cut off when Valerie grabbed his shoulders and pushed him out of the way before Spectra could get a hold of either of them. She then took a gun out of pocket and fired at Spectra, which hit the ghost in the back and blasted her even further away.

Out of harm's way, Danny recovered from the quick rumble, looking with a curious and surprised glance at Valerie, who was panting.

He couldn't believe it...she just saved him...

"Danny..." she said, glancing up at him. "...if you won't let me do it, then we'll work together..._let me help you_!"

He could only stare back in shock...she was looking at him with the same ferocity in her eyes that she showed in the past when it was just _them_ fighting.

Now everything was reversed - she was now _asking _to _help_ him in a ghost fight...this was going by way too quickly...

Precious seconds ticked by, but they seemed like minutes, as Valerie awaited an answer.

"I'm sorry about everything, but please...right now...LET ME HELP YOU!" she screamed out. Her life seemed to depend on it.

She watched as Danny continued looking at her sadly...she didn't care what he could be thinking...she had to help him...in his weakened state, he probably wouldn't be able to do it...

She wanted his desperately to say that he would...

But as the last moment faded, she watched him put his head down, turn around on his knees, and transform into Danny Phantom, flying off.

Valerie's head hung down...it looked like there'd be no other way out of it...

But then she felt something resting on her shoulder. A bit startled, she glanced at it and found that it was a hand, which was covered with a silver glove.

It was Danny's - and as she looked up at his face, she was pleased to see that he was smiling.

"All right..." he said a little hoarsely, extending his other hand down to help her up. "Let's tear this ghost apart..._together_."

Valerie couldn't help it as a smile formed on her own lips. She wasn't sure if he had accepted her apology, but she knew, at least by looking at his hand, that there was hope there.

She grasped his hand, pulled herself up, and positioned herself in a stance where her face now wore an expression of anger, her battle face.

In a flash of light, Danny watched as Valerie's mechanical suit appeared, turning her into the ghost hunter he had always hated to fight.

But now she was fighting _with _him.

When the jet-sled came out of her shoes, he asked, "You ready?"

"Only if you are," said Valerie, smiling.

Because they were under the bright light streetlamp, Danny could see through the mask.

Valerie smiling underneath that battle mask of hers...laughing slightly, he knew that it was something he was going to have to get used to...

"All right," he said, when she was ready. "Let's go!"

"Gotcha," she said. Working with someone who was once her enemy...this was going to be interesting...

Valerie's sled kick-started with some flames, and they were off together, side-by-side, after the specter.

_A/N: Heh heh...is this partnership going to work, or will Spectra get the better of them? Review, please..._


	16. Aid From Above

_A/N: Hey everyone...back with my latest chapter!_

_Well, before I start, I'll make a confession. I never really meant to show off a lot of things on my profile, but after Evilevergreen's review, I realize not telling may be just as bad, so here we go..._

_So...anyone ever catch on that I'm a male? Well, I've always thought that people could catch onto that (I mean, with my penname and my writing style with a somewhat lack of romance), but I guess no one decided to make that assumption. Believe me...I was laughing out loud and hard when I read that review, but then it also got me thinking. So yeah...I'll just get that out of the way and type it into my profile along with some other things._

_So now that this is all sorted out, here's your next chapter._

_**Chapter 16 - Aid From Above**_

Sam, Tucker, and Jazz...if they could only see him now...

But then again, even Danny himself couldn't believe what was happening...

His once-great enemy, Valerie, was flying beside him into battle...while he was _in ghost mode_...

Sometime during their flight he even pinched himself to make sure he wasn't in a dream world...but this was real...he and Valerie were allies...flying after the ghost that had caused so much destruction within the past weeks.

_"Just you wait, Spectra...you're going down!"_ he thought, feeling his fist clench. _"This is for Tucker...for Sam...for Jazz..."_

Then, looking over at his ally flying next to him, he also thought, _"For Valerie..."_

However, he had never counted for this odd occurrence. At the same time he looked at her was the same exact moment when she did the same thing. They were staring at each other in surprise for a few seconds before they returned smiles. That basically sealed everything...

But it would have lasted longer if something else didn't happen...

Blue smoke appeared as Danny's sense suddenly went off while they were flying over a meadow miles from the town.

Valerie watched the whole thing with a small look of wonderment on her face. "What's _that?_" she asked, curiously.

"It's my ghost sense," said Danny, coming to a sudden stop and looking around suspiciously. "It tells me that there's a ghost around...but the problem is that I can never pinpoint the exact location..."

"So she's around here somewhere?" Valerie asked a little nervously. "Right now?"

"Yes..." said Danny, his voice getting softer. "But we have to be careful now...she could be anyw - AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

An ectoplasmic blast from some unknown direction had hit him squarely in the chest and sent him flying.

"DANNY!" yelled Valerie, calling after him.

"VAL!" he cried back, getting further and further away from her.

Frantically, Valerie looked around to see if there was anyone nearby, but she could not see anyone or anything. Starting up her machine once again, she flew in the direction that Danny was sent.

She didn't like the resulting area - she soon found herself flying through a thick grove of trees, usually a nice quiet place during the day, but dark and ominous in the moonlight. What seemed to be just a cluster of trees were now shadowy branches and sharp twigs that resembled hands. Every single rustling of leaves only intensified her fears - it was spooky.

And it was hard work dodging through each and every one of them as she searched for him on her jet-sled. But the further she searched, she only seemed to find more trees.

After searching for about a minute in every possible place she could, Valerie still could not find him.

"DANNY!" she yelled out, close to panicking upon the condition of her friend. "WHERE ARE YOU?"

The sound of some faint noise was carried by the wind, but she didn't know what it was...

"Danny!" she yelled again, flying to find the location. "Are you OK? Where are you?"

And the noise returned - but this time it formed a meaning. A faint _"I'm over here" _came from an eastern direction of the small grove.

Flying over there, she finally spotted him sprawled against a tree, moaning.

"Danny!" she yelled again, flying down to his level. "Are you OK? You scared me..."

His green eyes opening slowly, he said softly, "Yes...I'm fine..." Valerie then reached over to help him up while he picked out a few pieces of rogue bark out of his hair.

_"Then I'll make sure that you aren't!"_ yelled a different voice.

Danny's and Valerie's attention shifted to the source of the new voice, wherever it was...they could not locate it. They only saw pale moonlight and trees, the leaves dripping with fresh water.

But Danny knew who it was as he got to his feet once again. "Where are you?" he yelled, hoping an answer would come out of the open. "Show yourself, Spectra!"

_"With pleasure!"_ yelled the same voice. But now the source of the voice became visible for both teenagers to see.

"Well, what do we have _here_?" asked Spectra in her human-like form, wearing the usual evil smile on her face. "Oh, the ghost kid and his new _friend_! How _touching_!"

Just the sight of the ghost gave the hunter girl a savage feeling. Valerie, angry about the earlier surprise attack on her friend, suddenly charged at the black specter with a charged ray gun, screaming out her frustrations in one long scream.

"NO! Valerie!" yelled Danny, trying to stop her, but it was too late.

"Oh, _please..._" sighed Spectra, simply blocking the gun blast with a shield. "You people and your anger...you just never seem to learn..."

The gun's ray bounced off the shield and sent it back towards Valerie. The ray hit her in the dead center of her chest, sending her crashing towards a tree trunk.

Valerie quickly recovered and flew after Spectra again in a rage. The ghost quickly stopped her in mid-flight and then knocked her back down at the same tree.

"VALERIE!" Danny cried. He went after the fallen hunter girl, but Spectra stood in his path before he could get there. She landed quietly on her feet as she then glanced over to the downed hunter, slightly chuckling.

"Inexperience..." she said, looking over at Valerie with a sickening grin. "It really does separate the true fighters from the weak..."

She looked back at Danny with the same hideous complexion.

The comment caused a triggering reaction in the half-ghost..._Weak? Valerie?_

"She is _NOT_ weak!" he yelled, aiming and shooting a ray from his hand. The ectoplasmic blast sent Spectra flying, forcing her into a bush. "She might be a little ragged around the edges, but don't you _dare_ say she's weak!"

Recovering, Spectra flew out and changed into her blackened appearance. Wrapping her tail around a surprised Danny's ankles, she swung him around once again and sent him flying out of the grove, high into the air. Flying after him, she took the chance to hit him again while he was careening through the air. Using her new-found speed from all the absorbed misery, she got in front of his trajectory.

Before Danny could respond, her fist connected with his jaw, and sending him back towards the earth, back into the small forest. He landed on his back on a dead laurel bush, tearing his suit and scattering its brown leaves everywhere.

His eyes opening slightly, he staggered back up, the unrelenting pain now increased. He tried looking around for his adversary, but she had unfortunately seen him first. She conjured up another blast from her hand, which struck into his back and forced him into another tree face first. He fell backwards, facing the sky. He couldn't get up.

And before he knew it, Spectra's face blocked his view of the sky. His instinct automatically put up his hand to charge a shot at her, but she held down on top of his wrist with her black hand, stopping him from doing so.

"You see, child?" she said menacingly. "Not even with your little friends can you defeat me! With all these powers I have, fighting you is about as easy as that Box Ghost!"

That remark was really hitting below the belt. Danny tried to blast her off with his free hand, but she sensed it and just held down on his other wrist.

"You're weak, Danny...just like your friend..." she said, now really trying to get into him.

_"Don't listen to her!"_ he desperately thought, trying to push his growing misery down. _"None of this is true!"_

But she continued with the insults, her bright red eyes glowing so fiercely that he was forced to look directly into them, even if his eyes were closed. They simply pierced through the dark that they resembled two red orbs.

"You're worthless..." she said threateningly, but softly. "You're not _powerful enough_...you can never stop me..."

"GET OFF OF ME!" he yelled, struggling to free himself, and finding intangibility impossible.

"No..." she simply said. "I'm gonna stay right here until -"

"- until _I_ force you off!" interrupted a voice.

Spectra looked up from her victim to see an ectoplasmic foam smack directly in her face and pin her towards a tree. Danny immediately got up from where he lay and quickly massaged his wrists.

"You OK, Danny?" yelled Valerie, running up to him with a gun in her hand.

"I've been better," he said, truthfully. "But thanks a lot for that save..."

"Don't mention it," she said, patting her gun. "Now c'mon...I want to tear that ghost apart!"

Helping him up, she asked, "Which way did she go?"

He was about to shrug, until a large explosion caught their attention, causing them to fly in that direction. Spectra had just burst free from her temporary prison.

Reaching the area in almost a heartbeat, they could see the remains of the tree that Spectra had just destroyed to free herself from.

"YOU!" screamed the ghost, pointing her finger directly at Valerie. "How _dare_ you interrupt me! You'll be the FIRST one!" She flew towards the girl with outstretched hands.

Valerie, wise to Spectra's ways, quickly dodged Spectra on her jet-sled. Looping upside down in the air, she got behind the specter and shot her back with some ray blasts from her sled, smacking her towards Danny.

Danny took the opportunity to find an attack of his own, as he took Spectra by the tail and shocked the dazed ghost with a ghost stinger. After much electricity, he decided to give her a taste of her own medicine. While keeping hold of the ghost, he swung Spectra around as she did before to him, and sent her flying back towards Valerie.

Valerie responded to the pitch by taking out her gun.

But before she conjured up a shot, Valerie yelled out, "DANNY! GET AHEAD OF HER!"

_"Since when was she the boss of me?"_ he thought. But he knew what the purpose was, anyway, so he obeyed. At the same time, he was glad that the partnership was working.

The rays hit Spectra in the back, sending her flying. But she didn't fly far - once Danny got ahead of her, he gave Spectra another dose of her own medicine by punching her in the face, back towards Valerie, creating a mini tennis match.

"Here's _inexperience_!" yelled the ghost hunter before returning the volley back to a waiting Danny. She threw another bomb at the ghost, making Spectra fly into the other direction.

Danny never got the chance to hit her again, because soon the black specter had finally snapped out of it and crouched in mid-air. Spinning into a small sphere, and transforming back into her human-like form, she set her sights back on Danny.

She surprised him once again as she then blasted him out of the air, sending him spiraling down towards another bush.

"GYAH!" he yelled, getting forced back down.

He landed with another crash that sent dead leaves everywhere, some of them cutting into his suit again and scratching his face. When he opened his eyes, he tried to get up, but then some foot stepped on top of him. A few seconds later he found himself staring into Spectra's glowing eyes once again.

But there was something different...those eyes...they were a heck of a lot brighter...and her face...

Not only was it glowing green, but there was a look of ferocity on her face that he could never imagine...it was hard to believe that this ghost once smiled...just the look of expression on her face made him cringe...

**_"That's it!"_** she boomed. **_"You stupid little...that's it! I'm not playing anymore!"_**

A cold sweat formed on his face as he listened to the way she spoke. Spectra's voice was so low that it was unrecognizable - she didn't even sound female...

"DANNY!" cried Valerie. She raced towards the area on her sled as fast as she could.

But regrettably, Spectra knew she was coming. Turning around, a thin, red ray came out of Spectra's finger, lancing into Valerie. Her jet-sled continued flying out from under her feet, but Valerie remained situated in the air. The ghost hunter girl tried moving, but soon she came upon the unbearable conclusion that she was paralyzed.

**_"I'll deal with you later!"_** yelled Spectra. Then her viewpoint turned back onto Danny, to whom she now formed an evil grin to.

_**"But as for you...you've meddled long enough...I was just planning on absorbing the misery off you two, but by the time I'm finished with you...you'll be begging for me to only do that!"**_

Danny tried to get free, reaching for the Fenton thermos, but Spectra just hit him with another ray, stopping his movements. The thermos deflected off a tree and rolled right underneath Valerie, where she could not reach it.

Once again, that searing pain he had felt when he had encountered her earlier in the cafeteria had returned. But as he was already injured, it just felt a lot worse - no word could describe it.

**_"You really are worthless..."_** said Spectra, her words now seething into his brain. **_"You're weak..."_**

_"No!" _he kept screaming. _"I'm not giving in..."_

_**"You brought someone here...and now you'll be the fault of her screams and suffering..."**_

"SHUT UP!" he screamed. "GO AWAY!"

_**"Yes...you'll be responsible...just like Sam and Jazz..."**_

And with the introduction of those two names, Danny started panicking. _"Oh God...please...don't mention that..."_

**_"Yes...Sam and Jazz..."_** she said louder. **_"You will fail...just like you failed them..."_**

Failure...

He had always hated that word...so demeaning it was to his reputation...which was already lowered...

And with those thoughts, the barrier vanished, allowing his misery to surface. Spectra inhaled the green mist with an almost savage pleasure.

**_"Ahhh...thank you...I needed that..."_** she said, mockingly. She did not look down at the teen, who had his eyes closed, but there were tears streaming out of them.

After she had inhaled the last of the vapors, she looked down on him.

**_"Now it's time..."_** said Spectra. **_"And don't worry...I'll make this as quick as possible..."_**

"DANNY!" yelled Valerie. "NO!"

Danny heard her, but he knew that she could not help him...it was pointless...

And Spectra heard her, too. **_"How sad...isn't it..."_** she said, looking over at Valerie. **_"...knowing that help is less than twenty feet away...but nothing can be done..."_**

The half-ghost only stared back at her...only able to look back at Valerie, saying _"I'm sorry"_ with his eyes...

Spectra turned back her attention to Danny. **_"Any last requests?"_** she asked.

When had no answer, she said, **_"Well then...good riddance...time to say goodbye, Danny!"_**

Déjà-vu from dreams attacked Danny once again as he watched her movements.

He watched as Spectra raised her arms. Out of the sky came green-colored lightning...condensing into a green sphere of ectoplasmic light...its radiance was unbelievable...

But everything else around him was turning black...

The sphere was getting bigger just as Spectra herself got fainter in his clouded vision...soon he was only able to see her outline...

He tried to move...but once again, he couldn't do anything...this was seriously the end...he closed his eyes, because the light was too bright...

He was losing so much power that it felt like something was tearing him apart...his last view was watching himself as was stripped of his ghost mode and returning back to his human state...little sparks of light flying everywhere...

And Spectra started laughing...actually it sounded more like she was screaming in delight because she was finally defeating him...but it was still nothing he wanted to listen to...

But then for some strange reason, Spectra's foot lifted off of his chest...

And even stranger...she had stopped conjuring up the green light...it had disappeared...

_"Huh?"_ he thought. Danny opened his eyes.

Those little sparks of light were everywhere...

...and Spectra wasn't laughing...she really was screaming in pain...

**_"AHHHH!"_** she wailed. **_"What the heck is this?"_**

Danny's head slowly lifted up from the ground...these weren't just little ectoplasmic sparks flying through the air...

And as he slowly looked around, he saw the answer...

A figure behind Spectra was dressed in a metallic suit...the direction that the sparks were coming from...

It was the Fenton Peeler...

That was the reason he and Spectra were getting affected...it was pointed in the same area...

But who...?

_"Valerie?"_ he first thought. But then it had to be...who else could it have been? She must have broken out of her paralysis...

Meanwhile, he was watching the specter's fate. Her young form vanished as more and more layers of youth seemed to peel right off of her, each layer emitting a green smoke that filled the air...and Spectra was getting older and older...

**_"YAHHHHHHHH!"_** she continued screaming, as the Fenton Peeler continued ripping her apart. **_"STOP IT! I'm losing it all! NO!"_**

But the pleading fell on deaf ears, as the last layers of youth finally fell off Spectra's body and onto the ground, where the final emissions of green misery smoke came out of the layer and vanished into thin air.

Spectra was old once again.

The ghost looked at her appearance and started screaming at her own hideousness.

_"NO! My youth!"_ she yelled. Her hair was now greyish-white, her face was wrinkled beyond belief, and her clothes, designed for a younger woman, were sagging on her body.

_"Who are you? Where are you? Who did this?" _she screamed out. Instinctively, she looked behind her, and suddenly gasped. _"YOU? But...no...that's impossible! You can't be...!"_

Spectra started going after whoever that person was, but Danny quickly turned ghost and stopped her by blasting her with a ghost ray. Spectra fell to the ground, steaming.

"You're not going _anywhere_!" he yelled, his fist shaking with fury.

"DANNY!" yelled a voice from an unknown direction. He recognized it to be Valerie's...but he was so disoriented that he didn't have any idea where it was coming from.

But with the yelling came the Fenton thermos...she must have thrown it in his direction...

He caught it and swiftly opened it, pointing it at the fallen Spectra.

"Time for _you _to say goodbye!" he yelled, activating it.

Slowly lifting her head, the specter saw the capturing blue and white light...there was nothing she could do stop it as the rays took hold of her...she screamed as she was getting pulled into her prison.

But not before saying, "You may have beaten me, Danny...but take a look at your _savior_! It's _you_ who's lost! _You hear me?_ **_LOST!_**"

Then, with a final scream, Spectra disappeared into the thermos, which Danny quickly capped.

He could not believe it...it was over...finally over...

He wanted to be happy, but he also felt sadness...everything should not have gotten this far out of control...especially during Christmas...

Exhaustion took over his body as he slumped down against a tree, basically collapsing onto its wet trunk.

Valerie ran over to the fallen teen. "Danny...are you all right?"

Though he was tired, he found a way to stand back up again and give her a reassuring smile that he was fine. Valerie responded by giving him another death hug.

"We did it Danny..." she said, happy that it was all over. "We did it...Spectra's gone!"

"Yes..." he wanted to say, but soon found out that the credit could not have been all on his own.

Slowly pulled away, he looked back at the ghost hunter and said, "No...I couldn't have done it without your help...if you haven't done all that stuff with the Fenton Peeler...I would have been a goner...it's you I have to thank..."

He tried going back towards her to hug her again, but got in turn a reaction from her. Valerie gave him a strange look that wore the look of _"What the heck are you talking about?"_ all over it.

"What?" she asked, confirming his suspicions. "Fenton Peeler? I'm lost..."

"Wasn't that you?" he asked, trying to make sense of things. "Spectra can't just grow that old within a span of a few seconds...the Fenton Peeler does something like that."

But she continued with the same strange expression. "Danny...I'm sorry, but...I have no idea what you are talking about..."

Danny was aghast. If she didn't do it, then who...?

His thoughts were stopped short, however, as he suddenly felt a cold chill run down his spine...

And Valerie, looking behind him, slowly gasped and pointed a shaking finger at something behind him...

_"Danny..."_ she said, once again white with fear. _"L-look behind you!"_

Following his instincts, Danny did just that...

...and was met with one of the greatest shocks of his life...he never expected any point of reality come this far...

Completely foreshadowed by dreams of the weeks in the past, a tall, skinny, black figure in a black long coat stood before him with black gloves. Danny took a quick second to examine the figure's left hand, with undoubtedly held the device that he was speaking of...

Was he _dreaming?_

"Who...?" he began. "What...who are you?"

"I have a feeling you know..." said the figure.

_"That voice..."_ he thought. The voice was muffled through all of that black clothing...but he could sense something oddly familiar about it...but it couldn't be...was he really that accurate?

"But here..." said the figure, taking off the veil. "Why don't I just give you the answer right now?"

Danny nearly stumbled as he looked into her face...it was true...

"J-Jazz?" he softly asked, almost daring to wonder if she was just a figment of his imagination. "Is that you?"

But it was a pretty inane thing to ask...there was no one that looked like her...but there was something different...

Her eyes...they seemed to be swollen...she looked really tired, as if she had just woken up from sleep that had lasted a year...

"How's my little brother doing?" she asked almost sweetly, smiling back at him. But that same look of almost disparate feature around the eyes remained. "Looks like I came at the perfect time..."

And Danny fell to the ground. This couldn't be happening...

"Jazz..." he asked softly, almost in a soft murmur. "What are you doing here?"

"Well..." she said, looking over at ghost hunter behind him, who was wearing a shocked face. "...I can see quite well that you have now patched things up with Valerie..." She continued smiling, as she then came back saying, "I knew you could do it..."

"But..." he continued. "...what...are you doing here?"

"I came to help you..." she said plainly. "I always said that I would..."

Danny remembered the statement his sister had said to him those weeks ago...the words coming back to him...clear as daylight...

But then there was a little part of it that she had also mentioned...but at the same time fearing...

"Jazz..." he said, slowly getting up from the ground. "I...can't...I can't..."

He didn't even know what he was saying...only one thing was on his mind...he had the greatest desire to tell her...

...then what the heck was holding him back!

"Jazz!" he suddenly screamed, running up to her and preparing to give her a hug.

But as he was running towards her, Jazz's expression of a smile suddenly turned back into a frown...and her head slacked down as her chin slowly pointed towards her chest...

Danny was wondering why...until something happened that gave him an even bigger shock...

While he was running, his foot caught the side of a rock and he tripped over it. While he was falling in mid-air, Jazz was in his direct path while he was doing so. And Jazz's head was still down, not looking at him. There was no time to tell her to get out of the way, but as the next instance happened, he realized that it would have been completely useless.

Instead of a collision, Danny had phased right through his sister and landed on the grass behind her.

And throughout the whole span of seconds, she hadn't moved...nor had he gone intangible...

His face seemed to collide with the ground in slow motion as a wave of different emotions came over him...after hitting the ground, he lay there for a few seconds, taking in all of the events. He tried to continue clinging onto that hope, but then came to the painful and bitter conclusion as realized that he was lying upon false grounds.

Danny didn't want to get up...he just wanted to lay there...curl up, and let this nightmare pass. He fought them bitterly, but he found that he could no longer hold them back. The tears flowed out of his eyes...

Then looking back at his sister, he saw that she still hadn't moved...she was still in the same position.

Remaining stationary, she said softly, "I'm sorry..."

_"No..."_ he said, the rain falling from his cheeks. _"I won't believe it! No! You're not...you can't be!"_

"I'm sorry..." she just said again.

_"Jazz, no...please..."_

But Jazz didn't say another word. Continuing to wear the same expression on her face, she just slowly backed away from him, walking backwards into an open field away from the grove of trees. The rain seemed to be falling right through her, and the luminescence of the moon shone such that it seemed like she was disappearing into it...

Danny forced himself off the ground and ran towards her in a mad dash, hoping to stop her, but soon saw that he was running toward nothing.

Panting heavily, Danny felt many forms of shock, sorrow, panic, and pain leap through him at the same time as he just stood there where his sister had been...

He fell to the ground again, weighed down by all the emotions he held...was this _really_ happening?

This had to be some sort of trick...

And Valerie slowly walked behind him, as she crossed over to him.

"Danny..." she said, putting a hand on his shoulder, "I'm sorry..."

He wasn't listening...he desperately was trying to believe one thing, as his hands went towards his head...

"Danny?" asked Valerie, trying to speak to him. "Danny?"

He didn't listen to her questions. "This isn't happening..." he said. "I'll wake up...this isn't happening..."

Valerie tried her best to find a way to tell him, but unfortunately, she couldn't find any single word of doing so. But without warning, Danny had suddenly jumped to his feet.

"Danny?" asked Valerie, a bit stunned. "What are you doing?"

He didn't answer her. "This isn't happening..." he muttered to himself again. "This isn't happening..."

And, without warning, he set himself in position, and flew off before Valerie had a chance to work out everything that he said.

"DANNY!" yelled Valerie, kick starting up her jet-sled and flying after him. "WHERE ARE YOU GOING?"

She could only hope he wasn't doing anything stupid...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

In a blind rush of tears and adrenaline, Danny continued flying toward his destination. Several times during the way he met several trees and bushes that lay in his path, but nothing was deterring him.

He had to get to the hospital...

When it was in his sights, he phased right through the building, remembering to stay invisible because the hospital was keeping a watch over him...

But that was when his worst dreams were confirmed...a woman's voice on speakerphone echoed throughout the halls of the hospital...

_"Code blue...code blue...patient on fifth floor, room 520...cardiac arrest..._

Danny's own heart was almost about to go into cardiac arrest itself...

For Room 520...that...that was Sam and Jazz's room...

_A/N: Review, please...but...please don't kill me..._

_**WARNING** - The following disclaimer is a game spoiler!_

_Disclaimer: The scene with Danny passing through Jazz is based a bit around the ending of Final Fantasy X, which, in my opinion, is one of the greatest RPGs ever. Putting this up top might have spoiled things..._


	17. Illumination

_A/N: Hey, back again with another update..._

_Despite the long wait, I'm back! But I really like the way this chapter came out for me...but I know that most of you will not like how I end it..._

_How so? I'll let you read..._

_**Chapter 17 - Illumination**_

_"Code blue...patient of fifth floor...code blue..."_

He continued listening in shock, as everything only seemed now to be focused on that one sound...everything else didn't seem to matter at all...

A dagger...it was all he could describe it to be...a dagger through his heart...

_"She can't be..."_ he thought, fighting back the tears that could never seem to go away. _"No...she can't...she's too young...please..."_

But the echoing of the "code blue" continued blaring...the worst possible thing that he could ever listen to...he had never taken a liking to death, and always despised listening to someone dying...

However, finding out that it was someone close to him was something unbearable...

Danny covered his ears and shut his eyes tightly, desperately trying to block out the voice, but it was of no use...it just seemed to pierce right through the barrier, and he could only see Jazz's face, which seemed to be fading ever slightly with the chanting...

Danny removed his hands, almost falling down towards the ground and breaking down...

He had failed her...he had always promised to himself that no one would ever get hurt...be it any friend, family member, or even personal enemy who wasn't a ghost...

Jazz seemed to be slipping away...the first tear quavered and started falling from the corner of his left eye...

But then suddenly he took the thought and grabbed hold of it...

This wasn't the right thing to do, he thought. He couldn't just stand here, crying for her...standing around had never solved anything for him in the past...

He had to see Jazz...and save her...how he was going to do that second part, he had no idea...

Forcing himself out of his mental anguish, he took his head out of his hands and quickly phased up to the fifth floor, where the chaos was just as widespread as how it was on the bottom floor...

He could hear voices all around him and the clangs of the same "code blue" that was blaring on the first floor...all of the yelling voices belonged to nurses and doctors screaming at each other, each giving directions...

There were so many there that it was extremely hard to understand anything at first...but there was one familiar voice he was able to lock in on...

"C'mon, people, we can save her! All right...her stats...who has her stats?"

It was Dr. Alan's, the one he had spoken to before he ran up to the top of the building. Sam and Jazz were apparently under his care...

He didn't seem to be looking too well. His eyes were bloodshot red and he could see on the side of his face some previous tear marks, staining the corner of his eyes and watching the dried salt slightly crusting. Thinking about his own previous actions of running up to the roof, Danny knew perfectly well what those tear marks must have been about...

"We can't lose her!" he yelled. "We can't lose her like the other one!"

That statement was wrong...that "other one" was here, currently in ghost mode...they just couldn't see him at the moment...

In fact, so much commotion was going on that he couldn't even get to see his sister...all of the doctors and nurses were surrounding her, blocking her completely from view.

Danny was doing his best to hear the heart monitor, but he couldn't hear a thing because there was so much commotion going on around him...

He literally forced his way around everyone and tried to look into the face of his sister...

But unfortunately...he only fell into shock again, as his eyes widened in horror...

It wasn't Jazz...

"We can worry about those glass particles later!" yelled Dr. Alan, commanding the frantic nurses around him about the glass. "It's her heart that is the most concerning thing right now!"

His voice seemed to far away...Danny just backed away, terrified...

_"No...not Sam..."_ he thought, trying to fight back the usual pains. _"Not Sam..."_

He then suddenly thought of all the times they had spent together...every ghost they fought...every time he had shared with her...but soon the pictures were turning black and white...as if those were the last times he'd ever see her alive...

_"She can't die..."_ he bitterly thought. _"It's not fair..."_

The memories seemed to keep on coming in, drowning him as if they were attempting to taunt him...

And there was nothing he could do about it...

The world started spinning around again...his memories started coinciding with the voices all around him...

"We're losing her!" screamed a nurse, trying to locate a pulse and at the same time, reading the monitor. "Patient's heart rate is dropping at alarming speed..."

_Their first ghost hunt...he saved her from being hit with hundreds of plates..._

"Get me a defibrillator, ASAP!" cried Dr. Alan. One of the nurses ran out of the room, phasing through Danny in the process, and wheeled in the machine. Danny was watching with horror that Sam was closing in towards the bottom...

_She was blushing while looking up at him during the time Ember was free..._

"Alan..." said a nurse. "The glass is really disrupting her lungs...we have to get in there and get them all out!"

"I thought you said that you've pumped oxygen into her system!" he yelled.

_She was falling off the Freakshow's train...he dove after her and caught her before she reached the bottom of the ravine...the crystal orb smashing to pieces..._

"Too much oxygen would have given her brain defects! She can't breathe on her own! We have to get those glass particles out of there...or she'll be lost, too..."

"Don't say that, dang it!" screamed Dr. Alan. He was close to tears again, just hearing the word "too..."

Danny was now starting to shake with fear as he realized the news he had just received...

That wasn't Jazz...it was Sam they were operating on...

Then...where was Jazz...? The question seemed to grip at his insides, continuing to back away in fright...

But as he continued backing away intangible, Danny soon found his answer...the open door of Room 520 was right behind him...

Did he dare?

He didn't want to enter...he didn't want to know the whole truth...the room looked so ominous...but he knew that he would never find out if he never entered it...

This was it...

Preparing himself, and taking a deep breath, he entered the room of the unknown...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Valerie traced Danny's flying patterns back to the hospital eventually...for some reason, she knew he'd find him there...

Her first suspicion was that Danny was up on the roof again, attempting another stunt. But she knew that he would never do that again...luckily she didn't find him up there even when she did search...

So he had to be in the hospital...

Flying behind a bush, she quickly released the outfit around her, paying no attention to the fact that she had no coat to combat her against the continuing storm.

Entering the hospital, she heard the wailings of "code blue" all around her. Knowing what she had just seen, she knew who it belonged to...

Valerie's eyes started to water, as she started feeling pains for her friend, knowing that he must have been taking this quite harshly...

She knew she had to find him...but she didn't know what floor that Sam and Jazz were on...she tried asking someone, but everything was so rushed...it seemed like there were a million cases that night...

She was also met with, _"Where are your parents at this hour, young lady?"_ and _"You're soaking wet! You could catch pneumonia!"_

Valerie was getting quite angry. Neither of those questions mattered, and she was only concerned with trying to find her best friend.

After a while of trying to talk to some people about the whereabouts of two girls, Valerie could see that she had no choice...she had to do it all by trial and error.

Quickly sneaking into an elevator, she was presented with floors from 2-11.

Following her instincts, she pressed 5.

The ride seemed to take forever...she was afraid that Danny could be doing what she was currently fearing right now...

An abrupt halt followed by a ding signaled the end of the ride. She tried to get out, but was met with an oncoming rush of more nurses and doctors trying to go between floors back and forth...

"Is this the floor where Sam...?" she tried saying, but once again, her questions had fallen on deaf ears. No one seemed to be listening...everyone seemed to be in another room, working on some patient in the far corner...

Nothing seemed to be there...she only walked as far as she could before she was stopped by people telling her she couldn't go down any further...and the usual sort of questions that she had heard downstairs...

Frustrated with the same results, she decided that Danny wasn't on this level...she couldn't hear anything, anyway...

The crew left her as she started walking away in, past certain rooms, reading the golden numbers on the doors angrily as she passed by...

"Why can't they just listen to me?" she wondered aloud. "Why can't they just say something...one sentence...like, 'Oh, they're in Room 520, right here?'" she said, pointing to the door.

But then suddenly she stopped in front of the darkened door. Putting her head close to it, she could hear something in there...it sounded like weeping...

_"My God..."_ she thought. _"Could I really be this lucky?"_

Looking around to make sure that no one was watching her, she silently opened the door and closed it softly behind her. The room was barely lighted, and most of the source was mainly from the moon itself, trying to pierce its way through the storm clouds. She walked into the room, where the weeping got louder the further she walked...it sounded like a boy...

_"Danny?"_ she thought.

Heart racing, she peered behind the red curtain...

And found him...there was Danny in his ghost form, curled up on a chair, weeping...

She was about to run up to him, glad he wasn't on the roof, but then she noticed the reason why he was there...

Next to him, covered by a sheet that only reached up to her head, was Jazz...

She was wondering why she couldn't hear anything on the heart monitor, but then she saw the whole picture...

The monitor was muted...primarily to drown out the accompanying sound of a dead, straight green line...

Valerie couldn't believe it...Jazz had flatlined...

Instead of running to him, Valerie gasped at the sight...and almost felt the tears fall from her own face...it wasn't a trick that they had seen in the woods after all...

But she had gasped too loud...Danny quickly jumped at the sudden noise behind him and had started to freak out about being caught in the room, but the found out that it was Valerie. But it still didn't stop the tears from falling down.

Valerie wanted to say many things, but her mind settled on one phrase, looking at the forlorn sight in front of her.

"Danny..." she whispered, tears now starting to fall from her own eyes... "I'm so sorry..."

She had more to say, but she never finished. Danny flew up at her all of a sudden and wept on her shoulder, now completely distraught from the fact that what he and she had seen in the grove of trees was not an illusion...

"Jazz..." he whimpered, choking on his own shortened breath. "She's gone..."

Valerie tried her best to console him, but she had that horrible thought that no amount of words could ever do the job...she only held him back, but at the same time crying as well, feeling the exact same pain that he was holding within him.

"I'm so sorry, Danny..." she repeated.

"And Sam..." he whispered again, and at the same time trying to convey the whole picture. "They're operating on her outside...she's dying..."

Valerie twinged at the thought...that's was the reason for all the action on the level...

"It's not _fair_..." he whimpered, choking on his tears. "I can't lose them..._I can't..._"

She could definitely feel his pain now...losing his best friend and sister in one night...it was something that was hard to imagine...but here he was, in that very position. She just did the only possible thing she could do right now...console him. But in doing so, Valerie didn't know if she would ever have the same friend she had known for all this time...

And once again, he repeated the same words that he had said over and over again. "This is my fault..."

But she wasn't going to start by letting him say those words...

"Don't say that!" she yelled back, trying to force those words out of his head. "You didn't know! Stop saying that!"

"But..." he said, pulling away from her, "...her death was caused by my actions..."

"...Which was brought on by a bunch of links that caused you to react in that manner!" she yelled. "Those links had nothing to do with you, you hear me? _Nothing_ to do with you! You just reacted in the natural way that you would usually act, and unfortunately..." her voice trailed off before she guiltily gulped before saying her next words. "...Sam and Jazz accidentally got caught in the crossfire..."

"But..." he started, but she cut him off before she continued.

Her head went down as she then said, "It was mine, as well...I was the one who never listened to you in the first place...the reason why we have been fighting for all this time...the one who then forced you into the position of choosing between friends (her mind shuddered at the mentioning of her own actions)."

"And then I was the idiot chasing you, while you were going after the true enemy all along, forcing your friends and Jazz to aid you because I decided to go after you..."

Danny found the strength to look at her. Though he was still crying, it was sensed that he was, at least, listening to her confessions.

"This was not your fault, Danny, and it never was...please...don't blame yourself over something that barely involved you to start with in the first place..."

Hearing things from someone else seemed to be a breath of fresh air...yes, he had heard the similarity from Tucker before...but now he was listening to this from a person he had once considered an enemy...but was now deflected onto his side...

"Danny..." she continued, walking closer to him. "I know that this is hard, but please...don't do the same actions that you did before...I would never live it down if you did...please..."

She slowly outstretched her arms, hoping he'd walk toward her...

He was a bit hesitant in the beginning...he just stared at her, wondering if he could trust her...

But other than Tucker, what other person did he have left to trust that knew of his secret?

It was enough...he slowly walked towards her...finally accepting everything...knowing that he had a friend there to help him...

"Valerie..." he said softly, finally letting go of his guilt. "I'm sorry..."

She decided not to answer right away...she was just finally glad that she had gotten through to him, as she continued consoling him...crying at the same time he was, feeling all the pain that he was currently feeling...

"What am I going to do...?" he asked, through tears. "I wish they weren't this way...what am I going to say...?"

"I don't know, Danny..." said Valerie. "I'm sorry...I don't know..."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Neither noticed the weather outside...

The storm had slowed down to a crawl, and then it was absolutely nothing. The clouds passing overhead were blown away from the night wind, emptying out their final water droplets. The moon, previously hidden behind the clouds, now made its full presence, as it shone, absolutely bright after the tempest...

The rays of the moon were now shining through the window, now lighting the room with an even brighter illumination, hitting the spot where the two friends were...

Danny continued clinging onto his faith...he was hoping that somehow, something would give him an answer...anything...

One more tear fell from his eye - a sparkling, fragile diamond shining in the moonlight, full of his hoping...watching it splash to the ground...

But then he noticed something...as it fell to the ground, some wisp-like eminence broke free from it, sending off little sparks that he had never seen before...

Valerie suddenly felt odd...her friend was in ghost mode, but there was something funny going on...unlike other stories she had read about in her books, ghosts were the undead, always cold to the touch...

But this was different...she felt warm...

And Danny, at the same time, was feeling a bit odd, too, as he finally took a look outside. As the moon shone through the window, it was as if he could feel something stirring within him...a new feeling...

A new power...

Valerie lifted her head so she could figure out what was going on...and then once again, put her hand to her mouth, as she stared at his face.

_"Danny..."_ she said, shocked. _"You...you're glowing!"_

"What?" he asked. "How could...?"

But he never finished...he was now staring at himself in amazement. He assumed it to be the rays of the moon, but he knew that they couldn't be that powerful. His black suit was actually shining with some brightness he had never seen before, and the D insignia on his chest was sparkling very brightly like it was its own sun...

Danny put his hands to his face, and then took a second glance to see if it was actually happening. When it remained, he remained stunned, but he still couldn't believe it.

"No..." he said, backing away from the window in terror. But in doing so, he accidentally walked against the edge of Jazz's bed post and toppled backwards, scraping his knee.

"Ouch!" he said, falling down in a darkened area, but still glowing.

"Danny!" said Valerie, running to him. "Are you OK?"

"Yes..." he said, putting a hand on his new wound. "I'm OK...it's just a scratch..."

But then another surprise happened. The palm of his hand resting on the wound suddenly started glowing with even more light. It flashed quickly, and then he could see some red droplets over it. Then finally, he felt something merge beneath it, before it finally died down to its "normal" sheen.

Valerie's eyes were wide open, as she took in all the events she just saw. "Danny..." she said, breathlessly. "What was _that?_"

Danny had an answer, but he didn't know if he could trust it. Did he really...do what he thought he did?

He removed his hand, and Valerie just gasped again.

_"You...you healed it..."_ she said.

Danny was now even more confused...he healed his own wound...but what made him heal it?

He looked at his other hand, which was resting on the ground. But as he removed it, he saw something else. There was a crack in the tile that ran along the room lengthwise, but where his hand had rested, the crack had simply stopped for a few inches, then continued again...

This was happening too fast...he put his hands to his face...was this actually happening to him?

It was then he noticed that his right hand, previously on the cold tile, had now turned warm...Danny slowly took his hand off his face, and looked at them...

They were stained with his tears...which were sparkling...

"Valerie..." he said, looking at his hands, and forcing himself to believe it. "It's my tears..."

"Your _tears?_" she asked. "But how?"

He wasn't even sure how he could answer that question. In fact, he had been crying so much these past couple of weeks that it seemed impossible that these things could heal...

But then he started thinking...all the times it had occurred it was because of some emotion...some yearning...

The time that he first felt after seeing the first dream...his yearning that Spectra would leave him alone during his fight...the time when he saw Sam's body in the old building after she had fallen through its window...and now, crying because he was hoping that Sam and Jazz were somehow going to live...

It was his faith...

And it was all during the time he was in ghost mode...

Were his tears...a new power? A power to fix how things were the way before?

He then looked back over at his sister...and another idea flew into his head...

The power to _resurrect?_

"Valerie..." he said in shock at his sudden understanding. "Do you think...?"

She didn't let him finish...she had exactly the same thing in her head when she suddenly lifted him up and screamed. "Oh my God...Danny...I don't know..._but it might work! Do it!_"

He knew that this was the moment of truth. His heart skipped a beat as he slowly walked over to Jazz. He gently pulled off some of the covers over chest, so that her heart was exposed.

Wiping some tears away from his face, he looked at his hands, as they gave off that same strange sparkle.

He prayed with everything he had that it was going to work, as he then placed his hand on Jazz's forehead and heart...

_A/N: Send a review, please...and yes, most of you are wondering...I leave it there!_

_I did warn at the start that there was some way I had to end it, and unfortunately, this is where it had to be done, in order to keep the chapters at around the same length of each other...and to sort of keep people guessing...I hope you all understand..._


	18. A Greater Bond

_A/N: Hello, back again with the 18th chapter of this story..._

_Once again, I have to apologize for the ridiculous amount of waiting time between chapters. I've been pressed for studying for my finals and had almost no time to write this..._

_Well, this chapter turned out a lot better than I had anticipated. I thought it was going to be hard, and well, uhh...well...OK, it was still hard, but I liked how everything turned out..._

_No warnings here...I'd like to see some of your reactions through a review after this chapter, however..._

_**Chapter 18 - A Greater Bond**_

Danny's hands were in place, as he continued concentrating on those two areas...

And Valerie was waiting behind him, with nervous anticipation...

_"C'mon Jazz..." _he continued praying. _"Come back..."_

He looked at the monitor to see if there was any change in rhythm...but it still remained a flat line...

A line that continued to torture him...

Danny tried again, wiping off more tears than before, feeling their warmth between his fingers...placing them on the chest of his sister...

No change...

_"No..."_ he thought. _"Work, please WORK! Why isn't it working?"_ More tears fell down from his cheeks, and he continued collecting them with his hands and replacing them back on his sister.

Several more seconds passed...still no change...

Danny was now starting to grow frustrated, as his tears fell even more futilely down and he kept chanting in his head. _"Jazz...come back...please come back..."_

The usual warmth that he had felt when his hands touched his tears seemed to automatically turn cold once he placed them upon his sister...her skin remained cold...the torturing flatline remained...

He continued staring, hoping, praying, that some change was going to occur...but he never got one...

His tears were flowing even faster than the speed that he could wipe them off, where they landed and splashed on her face, giving off little sparks as they exploded on impact. Then the sparks just seemed to fade, as they then disappeared into her skin, turning from a sparkle to a lusterless grey...

_"Wake up Jazz..." _he pleaded, his thoughts now desperate. _"Don't leave..."_

She wouldn't wake up...it wasn't working...

No frenzied effort could ever cause a change in her lifeless body...a body that was now nonexistent of life, nonexistent of a soul...

Even with some power of healing could he not help people...he felt absolutely worthless...

Jazz was gone...there was no reversing it...

And Valerie looked on with horror and false hope on her face as she realized too that it wasn't going to work after all...she knew that Danny had now lost his sister, and knowing that she had something to do with the whole thing just made her feel even worse...

After one final attempt at reviving his sister and feeling the tears grow cold once again on her skin, his shaking hands slid off of her chest, and he broke down once again as his hand rested upon her cold hand...

_"Jazz..."_ he said softly, feeling her name reverberating hundreds of times in his head.

He sat there on the ground on his knees, kneeling next to his sister, his hand firmly clamped upon hers...

Valerie wanted to go over to him, but there was only so much that gesture would do...so she decided not to...it probably would have made him feel worse. So she watched from afar, sadly watching Danny holding Jazz's lifeless hand...

It remained that way...until something else happened...

The moonlight shining through the window suddenly grew even brighter, illuminating the room even more intense than before. Her hands automatically jerked up to her face, shielding her eyes from the sudden brilliance.

But as quickly as the sudden change of brightness came into view, it quickly faded. As Valerie brought her hands down once again, nothing else seemed to be different, until she gasped at another surprise...

But Danny never saw it; he was into his miseries so much that he didn't even notice when a hand was on his shoulder...

_"Danny..."_ echoed a voice from the far distance from his hearing range. _"Look up..."_

_"That voice..."_ he thought. There was no other voice like it...

Did he...just...?

His head raised instantly, hoping to see the sight he desperately wanted to see...

But all he saw in front of him was his dead sister once again, accompanied with that flatlining that was torturing him so much, still clutching her hand that was now caught in eternal sleep...there had been no change; his sister had not been resurrected...

But where did that voice come from...?

Was that voice just in his thoughts? Was he going mad now from the loss of his sister that he was beginning to hear things?

Another line sent him back to reality. _"Behind you..."_ said the same echoing voice.

Turning around, Danny copied the same gasp emitted from Valerie. Now he knew that he couldn't be hearing things, because Valerie was also staring at the same thing that he was staring at.

_"Hi Danny,"_ said the new form in the room, the voice being echoed as the words left her mouth...

"Jazz?" he said.

It _was_ Jazz...now as the ghost that he had foreseen.

It was pretty much the same outfit that he had dreamt with the shining black long coat that once protected her body, which was now ragged and torn from the billboard falling on top of her. She had the same gloved fingertips as well.

But there were changes...despite her current visibility of being only slightly opaque, she pretty much looked the same if she were alive...he could see her long red hair that trailed down to her waist, all straightened out with the blue ribbon. And her eyes were still blue.

As much as Danny wanted to say many certain things right now, everything got lost on the way to his mouth, he just stared there in shock, looking at his sister's new form...

But then he was able to say some words, as he sputtered out, "Jazz...I'm sorry...I was trying to..."

She didn't let him finish. _"I know what you're trying to do, Danny,"_ she said in a matter-of-fact kind of voice. _"But please...don't..."_

No? Then did this mean she _wanted _to...?

"But Jazz..." he started. "I can't let you die..."

_"Danny, death is not the end of everything, and even you, almost having experienced it, have now grown stronger..."_

He wasn't sure about the meaning of those words, but then he started thinking about the accident. He remembered how it was in that chamber, feeling all that energy surging within him as he lost half of his humanity to a ghost...

And as he continued thinking, growing stronger must have meant how he was doing so well in his battles...

_"But as for me...I've already been separated...you saw me in that grove, and you're looking at me right now...there's nothing you can do for me, even with those tears..."_

"But..." he said, wiping away a stray tear and watching it sparkle on his hand, "I thought that I had the power to heal..."

Watching that quavering drop on his hand suddenly disappear into a puddle, he felt as if he had been cheated...these tears couldn't heal...they couldn't do a single thing...

_"But you do have the power..."_ said Jazz, now walking up to him. _"But...unfortunately..."_ she paused for a second, looking at her own semi-opaque hand before she continued, _"...this power only works for the living...it worked on you because you're half-alive..."_

"But what about the ground?" he asked, looking for that crack that he had previously smoothed over with his hand.

But as he looked at the spot, he saw that the crack had reappeared.

_"It's only temporary on that..."_ she said. _"It reappeared at around the time that you tried using it for me..."_

That was true...

But then there was another thing...

"How do you know so much about these?" he asked, pointing slightly to some more escapee tears flowing down his face. It was as if she knew what he was talking about from the very beginning, although they had seen each other for only a few minutes.

Jazz gave a slight smile. She seemed to be building some slight suspense before she spoke her five-word answer.

_"I gave that to you..."_

He, of course, wasn't expecting this answer. "What?"

She chuckled slightly. _"Remember when you were in the grove, after I disappeared, there was some mist that appeared in the spot where I once stood?"_

"No," he said. He revisited the painful memory in his head, remembering when he attempted to hug her for helping him defeat Spectra, only to just pass right through her...

Jazz continued, as some sadness suddenly drifted into her echoing voice. _"I knew that I was beyond it...there was no chance that I was going to survive...but i just remembered, looking at you, watching you cry, hoping that things would come back to normal. It was all of that faith in your tears...I knew I had to do something, but I couldn't tell you what I was going to do..."_

Danny touched his face once more, and Jazz nodded slightly, as she continued.

_"Because I knew that I could not be revived, I remembered that Sam was in the same predicament...and I couldn't let her fate become mine..."_

And suddenly it became clear...

"Then these tears...when you died, you put your..._life essence_...into them?" he asked.

Jazz, knowing that her brother had figured it out, smiled and nodded yes.

"Then..." said the forgotten voice in the room, belonging to Valerie. "It was meant for Sam?"

_"Yes..."_ said Jazz, her voice trailing off.

"But Danny was crying earlier...and he wasn't glowing...how come it didn't work before?" asked Valerie.

It didn't come quickly to Danny, but then he realized the one thing that happened when he and Valerie were in the room alone consoling each other earlier...

The moonlight through the clouds...

A symbol of his hope, trying to pierce its way through the grey, stormy clouds of misery, finally coming to rest upon him. It was like the ray of light activating the true brilliance within him...

The brilliance, overshadowed by tears...

Tears, overshadowed by hope...

Hope, overshadowed by misery...

He was finally able to let it go when Valerie was able to get through by saying it was never his fault...then came that ray of light...

It wasn't known if the timing was perfect or if it was mere coincidence...

But that didn't matter right now...all he knew was that this was all real...his tears, full of hope, had the power _to heal_...

Danny felt ecstatic, but then he felt a bit of sorrow as another thing then came to light.

"But Jazz...you sacrificed yourself..._to help me_...?"

He thought of the time when his ghostly wail hit her and then accidentally force her towards that old building...all of that was for nothing? It made no sense at all to him...

She smiled sadly, knowing that sooner or later she would have to answer that question. And knowing that Valerie was in the room, it now became even harder to say...

_"Remember what I said, Danny?"_ she asked. _"I promised to always help you...and I know that your friends have always been there for you, so they qualify as a part of you...as you share in their same feelings...in a way, saving them means saving you..."_

"But what about you?" asked Danny.

_"Don't worry about me..."_ said Jazz rather quickly, smiling sadly as she looked at herself in the bed. _"I have been watching you...even seen it over the past year...you can go on because you're a strong person...it didn't take these powers for you to fit these characteristics, but I have always known this to be true...and look at you now, fighting to save an entire city even with people believing you're evil..."_

Valerie felt a twinge of guilt, knowing that she used to be one of those people...

_"Even with all these hardships, you never give up the fight...I always admired that in you, Danny...and now look what you've done on your own..."_ she said, looking in the direction of the ghost hunter. _"You made another friend..."_

Danny looked behind him, looking at Valerie, who was now blushing...and for some reason, he felt himself blush as well...

_"There have been many times...where I know that you didn't need me at all..."_ she said.

However, he continued to have doubts...

"But...you've helped me so much...I could have have never been this way if it wasn't for you many times! I...I...can't let you go like this..." Danny said, tears falling at a faster rate with even more sparks coming off.

Jazz looked up and smiled slightly at her brother, at a slight loss for words.

_"But remember that bond, Danny?"_ she asked. _"I said I'll always be there, living or not...like a guardian...and I've always promised that..."_

Danny's head gazed in her direction when she finally finished with _"...Nothing changes this Danny...even in death, you're still my brother..."_

She tried to rest her gloved hand on his shivering shoulder once again, but unfortunately her hand just phased right through him once again. But the gesture made Danny feel warm inside, as if she was able to still touch him...at this moment, he had never felt a greater bond with his sister until now...he smiled back at her, even though tears were still falling...

And Valerie seemed to be taking in the poignant moment as she watched the ghostly brother and sister. She was experiencing a mix of happiness and slight jealousy, because she knew that no one could do that for her...

Danny was completely lucky to have a sister like her...even in light of Jazz's death, it seemed that their bond had grown stronger...and she was sacrificing herself so Danny could save his best friend...and Jazz didn't even mention her own actions as part of anything...

The tears falling from her own face seemed to contain of those mixes of emotions, as she continued watching them...

She could have just watched them right there, but a loud noise interrupted the moment, as a woman's voice blared on the intercom, _"Code blue...code blue..."_

It took less than three seconds for Valerie to realize what was most likely happening.

"Oh no, Sam!" yelled Valerie. "Danny...you have to save her!"

Danny was caught between going after Sam and saying goodbye to the other ghost in front of him. It was hard to make a decision...

"Jazz..." he said. "I..."

_"You don't have a lot of time..."_ said Jazz, smiling, her voice seeming to echo away even further. _"Go..."_

"But what if...?" he tried asking, but once again, was interrupted.

_"I love you, Danny..."_ she said, now starting to fade. _"Please...go...save Sam..."_

Danny wanted to say something else, but he seemed tongue-tied.

_"I'm always here...Danny..."_ she said, now completely gone from view, her echoing voice remaining. _"Always..."_

Then it all came to a rest...her ghost was gone...

_"Jazz..."_ he said softly, begging her not to leave...

Danny was about to pine for the second loss of his sister, but then Valerie was tugging at his silver glove.

"C'mon, Danny..." she said, her voice now starting to panic. "We have to save Sam!"

He sadly took one last look at Jazz's body on the bed, but then he had to realize that there was no saving her...remembering Clockwork's words, he remembered that things could only be saved in the present, not the past...

"DANNY!" yelled Valerie.

He forced his gaze away from Jazz and left the room quickly with Valerie, closing the door swiftly behind them.

The same doctors and nurses were huddled in the same corner, trying to revive Sam's body, which was starting to flatline just now. Valerie was about to run up there with a start, pulling him along, but Danny stayed rooted where he was.

"What are you _doing_?" she asked.

"They're still after me!" he yelled. "I can't just go waltzing up there while I'm Danny Phantom!"

He had a good point. Frantically searching around for something, Valerie finally found an doctor's coat, and a surgical mask and cap hanging near a door.

Snatching it, she said, "Here, put all of these on! I'll get them to think that you're one of the doctors on this floor and that will give you the chance to save Sam!"

"Thank you, Val," he said, putting on the quick disguise.

"Don't mention it..." she said. "Now hurry!"

Danny quickly tied the coat tightly around his body, hiding all signs of his outfit. Then he and Valerie rushed over to the corner where they were operating on Sam.

But when they got there, they realized that things were a lot worse off than they had thought...Sam was actually _already_ flatlining...and all of the nurses and doctors were already using defibrilators to try and revive Sam's heart...

Just the sight of her body was making Danny cry...but he knew that he had to save all of them for Sam's possible revival from the brink of death...

A voice behind Valerie and Danny made them jump. "What are you doing up here, young lady?" yelled a nurse behind them.

"I'm a friend of hers," said Valerie, pointing to Sam.

"Sorry, I was showing her here," said Danny, nervously, at the same time.

"You know the rules, doctor!" said the nurse. "No visitors up here!"

_"Oh my God, who cares about the rules right now?"_ thought Danny. In fact, both weren't listening to her anymore...time was literally of the essence right now...they had to get out of this conversation!

"Sorry..." said Danny, pushing past the nurse and into the room. "Stay out here," he said, pointing to Valerie.

"Y-yes..." she said, giving him a shaky thumbs-up. _"Good luck,"_ she thought.

Danny gave her a wink and headed into the room.

There was much chaos inside. Everyone was panicking, trying to save the Goth girl from the same fate as Jazz, trying to restart her heart, some trying to clear the glass out of her lungs...he could hear everyone's voices as they all gave commands to each other, completely oblivious to the fact that there was a fake doctor in the room...

This was Danny's chance when everyone wasn't looking...he wiped away some tears from his face and started towards Sam...

"CLEAR!" a nurse shouted one more time, pressing the defibrilator to Sam's heart. Danny watched as the monitor blinked once or twice, then go to a flatline...

The sight of her nearly-ruined body was making him cry...but he knew that he had a job to do, so he stepped even closer to the action...

"Who are you?" asked a voice behind him suddenly, making him jump. Turning around, he found himself face-to-face with Dr. Alan himself, who didn't look too pleased...

"Who are you, and what are you doing, wearing my things?" he asked.

Danny quickly glanced at the nametag on the doctor's coat. It had "ALAN" etched into it...

Taking the head doctor's coat..._smart..._

Every eye in the room was on him...in fact, no one seemed to be paying attention to the dying girl currently in the center of the room. Knowing he didn't have much time, he quickly tried to get past everyone, but soon people started boxing him in.

"Take off those clothes immediately!" yelled Dr. Alan. "And come with this guard here," he said, pointing. "I'm putting you under arrest for breaking and entering this floor...no one can be here!"

"Please..." said Danny, muffling his voice that he couldn't be recognized. He looked at Sam sadly before he then said, "I know how to save this girl...please...I know how she can be saved!"

"How do I know that you're not just trying to do something else?" asked Alan.

"Because..." said Danny, another tear falling from his eye. "I need to prove to you all that I'm not a bad guy..."

"Bad guy?" asked Alan. "Just who are you, anyway?"

After hearing this, he knew that there was only one way that the question could be answered. Taking off the coat, cap, and mask, he revealed himself.

A gasp came from every corner in the room as they were now looking at the glowing figure that stood before them.

_"DANNY PHANTOM!"_ shrieked one of the nurses. "He's the one that did this horrible thing to these girls!"

"No, please..." he begged. "I did not do this to them...I never would! Please!"

"Why did you make up that story?" asked Dr. Alan, his voice rising.

"The reason I had to make up that story is because it was the only way that I knew it would get them into the hospital without having their parents around. I did it so that you could have all of that time in order to save them! I never meant to make you think that I was the one who dropped them off...it was the only thing I could think of at that point...Please...you have to believe me...I would never do this to them..."

Precious tears continued falling from his face, splashing against the ground giving off sparks, his emotions starting to overwhelm him once again as he found himself in the middle of a circle of terrified and angry nurses and doctors.

"Please...believe me..." he said, getting on his knees. "I'm not a killer..."

And for a few seconds, everyone seemed to just stare at each other, wondering what to think...

Until one person came forward from the surrounding circle and knelt down next to him.

"I believe you..." said the nurse, trying to look at him.

Danny looked up, and was staring into the face of a young woman he had never met before. Though he knew that he didn't know her personally, for some reason he felt that he knew her before...

But then, somehow, he remembered something he had done quite a while back...something involving black ice...

"I was on that bus you saved from careening off the cliff those many weeks ago," she said, putting her hand on his shoulder. "But you flew away so fast that I was never able to thank you for saving my life..."

Danny gave a weak, but assuring, smile back at her.

The nurse helped him stand up while he wiped away more tears.

"I believe him..." she said, facing the rest of the surprised doctors and nurses. "I believe that he can save this girl, because he helped me..."

And after that statement, more support started coming out of the woodwork. More nurses and doctors came out from the group and shielded him from the security staff.

"Some of the people on that bus were some of my patients that couldn't stop thanking that he was there to save him," said another. " I believe him, too..."

"And he saved my niece from another incident," said one of the assistants. "He _is_ a hero..."

The actions really stirred some of the doubts away in the half-ghost.

In fact, just hearing those words from that first woman gave Danny the confidence he was begging to feel...many times it was from his friends, but now hearing it from an outsider was like another breath of fresh air...he knew, absolutely, for the first time in his life, he had supporters...

And finally, it was all sealed away when Alan spoke, in the new light of all of the support. "All right..." he said, dismissing the confused staff. They left slowly, still baffled by the turn of events, completely speechless.

Then Alan turned to Danny. "But I'm afraid that Ms. Manson is almost lost," he said, looking at Sam's monitor. "We can't seem to clear away the glass in her lungs and start her heart at the same time. What did you have in mind?"

Danny slowly motioned for the surrounding people to part, which they all did, slowly.

He took a second to glance at Sam's face...though he knew that it was possible, he still had that sinking feeling that it wasn't going to work. But he couldn't think that way...he knew that he had the confidence to save her life...and all it took was faith...

Concentrating, he made his hand intangible, as he gingerly brought up the glass out of her lungs in very small batches, making sure not to damage any other part of her accidentally. He was mostly met with surprise and short shrieks around him, as they did not know what he was capable of.

When another person read on the monitor that all of the particles had been lifted out, it was then realized that her lungs were damaged extensively from all of the shards of glass.

"No amount of surgery could ever fix those without killing her..." said Alan, looking at the clock. "I'm afraid that Ms. Manson's death will be -"

"I'm not done yet..." said Danny, wiping off some of the blood from his hand carefully.

He knew he had one tactic left...and he knew that it was his only hope...and Sam's.

Danny very carefully wiped away some of the tears on his face, feeling their usual warmth has they connected with his gloved fingertips. Looking at them one last time before he placed them, he could think of one line.

_"This will work..."_

He knew that the spirit of life lay inside of them...all he had to do was believe...

Closing his eyes, he placed his hands on Sam's chest and forehead...

At first, nothing seemed to be happening, as the warmth of his tears suddenly faded after touching her skin, turning cold...

But then, another unexpected warmness emanated from his palms, along with another strange brilliance that he had saw after healing his own wound. The light was so bright that he could not look at it...but one thing was for sure...

For some reason, it was painful...the warmth was now like a searing oven as his hands remained there, while he started screaming.

"I don't believe it!" said the same person at the monitor. "She's gaining a pulse! The wounds on her lungs are clearing up!"

"Danny!" yelled Valerie, basically bursting into the room with other people behind her. She wanted to see if everything was all right, but then she shielded her own face from the brilliant light. But she could see the outlining of Danny's contorted face, which was howling in pain...

The brilliant light show lasted for another ten seconds until the sheen then seemed to die down, as now red droplets formed above Sam's body, finding their way into the body that people once believed was lost...

Finally, Danny's body couldn't take it anymore...the glow seemed to die down from his own body, as the world now started to spin around him...his eyes rolled into the back of his head, as his eyelids grew heavy at the same time...

His legs didn't seem to be working...he lost balance and started falling towards the cold tile floor...

_"Danny!"_ yelled Valerie again, but her voice just seemed to a blurring echo that he wasn't able to understand...

The last thing he remembered at that point was someone catching him before he fell to the floor, and losing consciousness all together, his world once again going black...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Voices...

He could hear them in the distance...it was impossible to tell who they belonged to, but either way, it didn't seem to matter. Once again, it was some strange world he was in...a place he had never thought to visit so many times...

Danny tried opening his eyes to see where he was, but was met with even more difficulty...he just seemed to see black no matter where he was looking...

Then the blackness started clearing away, as he began to see outlines...the voices now stronger, and seeming to radiating out of them...

_"...anny!"_ yelled the figure he was looking at. _"Danny!"_

The black slowly left his cloudy and fuzzy vision, as the details of the face now came into a better light.

"T...Tucker?" he said, slowly.

The African-American gave a yelp of joy, but then almost fell off-balance after forgetting to hold the crutch in his hand.

"Dude!" he yelled. "You're awake! I can't believe it...you're awake!"

"Huh? What's happening?" Danny asked, confused. He had no idea what was going on...he had forgotten everything before he had fallen unconscious.

But Tucker didn't answer. He just hugged his friend, laughed, and then screamed in another direction, "HEY! HE'S AWAKE!"

No less than ten people rushed inside the door. Among them were Dr. Alan and the nurse he had remembered, but then he saw the ever-recognizable faces of his own parents, who were crying with joy. Also among them were Tucker's parents, also waving at him. Damon and Valerie Gray finished out the group, also happy to see him awake.

"How are you doing, son?" asked Maddie, shakily, as if she couldn't believe it was happening.

"I don't...remember..." he said truthfully. It was all a blur...

"Valerie said that she found you outside the hospital lying on the grass face-down," said Damon. "Are you all right?"

And everything seemed to quickly slam into place for Danny's memories...it came with such rushed speed that he couldn't tell them all apart from one another...

Danny looked at Tucker, who gave him a quick wink with his left eye. He then looked at Valerie, who also gave him a quick wink, but with her right eye.

"We thought we lost you!" said Jack, now hugging his son in possibly one of the most air-constricting bear hugs that he could ever imagine.

"Jack!" said Maddie, trying to make him let go. "Give him some breathing room!"

"Sorry," he said, relinquishing his death grip on Danny's lungs. Gasping for some air, it was then Danny took a look at himself. His arm wasn't in a cast, but in tight-fitting support that extended up to his shoulder. There were some stitches on his forehead and his legs were currently being elevated, but for some reason, he seemed perfectly fine...

"You seemed to be in a bad shape when Valerie found you," said Dr. Alan, "...but in the end, you seemed perfectly fine afterwards. That rose bush sure did a deal on your legs, though..."

Danny tried moving his legs. He could almost move them, but not much...they were covered with cuts and bruises...

"We're just all glad that you're all right, man," said Tucker, giving Danny a slap on the back.

"Ouch!" he said, feeling its impact.

"Oh, sorry, I forgot..." he said, blushing while the rest of the group laughed at him...

_"So everything seems to be all right currently..."_ Danny thought. _"No one seems to know anything else about me...but why do I have the feeling something's missing?"_

He looked around the group, and sure enough, found the spot vacant...

He was about to point this out, but then a voice called outside the door, "Can I see him?"

Before he could ask who, it was Valerie that quickly bounded towards the door, peered outside, and said to the mystery person, "Are you OK?"

"I'm better now..." said the voice. "Can I see him?"

Danny could see her nodding as she then looked back inside, faced him and said with a smile on her face, "Danny, you've got a visitor."

_A/N: I'll bet you all know who it is! I'm sorry I had to end it right there, however...I'll make it up to you after my finals, I promise!_


	19. The Greatest Gift of All

_A/N: (dodges all bullets and fire going in his direction) I'm sorry! (dodges another stray bullet)_

_I'm out of excuses...let's just say I came back from the dead...literally._

_For those reading this...I thank you all for your patience. Here's the 19th chapter._

_**Chapter 19 - The Greatest Gift of All**_

"Danny, you've got a visitor."

Valerie opened the door quite quickly, as if to not keep the surprise any longer...

Danny's stomach did a backflip when he saw a wheelchair-bound Sam outside his door. Once again, everything slammed into place to the fact that this was all happening...he couldn't believe it...

Though Sam had seen better days, he thought she looked perfectly fine...certain cuts and scrapes on her face remained from all the broken glass, but he could see that smile underneath everything...he'd never thought that after the accident, he'd be staring into her face again...his best friend...

But if Sam was alive...that also meant...

As fast as his happiness appeared, his sadness took over at the same time as his head went down...once again going through the rapid mix of emotions that he went through all these weeks, it could only be summed up in tears, whether happy or sad...

Dr. Alan and his parents cleared the way so that Sam could wheel to a spot right next to him. Tucker and Valerie watched the little scene with a smile on each of their faces.

When she stopped, she said with a slightly weak voice, "Hi, Danny."

Her voice was so fragile, as if she was afraid to speak any higher. There was nothing more he wanted to do than to tell her everything that he wanted to say, about how fearful he was for her life, about how he thought he'd never see her again, about Jazz's sacrifice to save her...

But he couldn't...he couldn't even look at her...it was as if all paths led directly to this...he felt so unworthy, he didn't deserve something like this...

Sam turned her head so that she could look at his face. "Danny?" she asked, a bit of scorn on her face. "Is that a tear?"

He was guilty. It was another tear, falling from the inside corner of his eye, which he caught with his finger before it could make a longer trail down his cheek. They just seemed to be endless...would they ever stop? But this one was different. The usual crying he had experienced had only one emotion behind it. This one just summed up everything that had happened to him. It was like all his fears and emotions wrapped up in one final tear.

Finally, he turned to look at her for a second time. "I'm sorry," he said, wiping the final remnants of the tear away. "It's just...I...I...I'm glad to see you, Sam," he said quickly, before he accidentally slipped out another word.

Sam's smile then reappeared, and then he watched as she slowly pushed herself out of the wheelchair and hugged him, in front of everyone. As he slowly raised his one good arm to wrap around her, he just felt like it was another world. And he loved every bit of it, for some reason...

"I'm so sorry," she whispered. "I'm sorry...I couldn't stop her...but I'm just glad you're all right..."

"It's not your fault," he whispered back. "Don't worry, you'll be all right...I don't blame you..."

Tucker felt himself blushing so much that he had to look away from the pair. But his direction met a line of vision of Valerie, who was also doing the same thing. Both then turned away from each other, each feeling themselves redden further.

Danny and Sam missed it all. They consoled each other for a few more seconds before slowly breaking out of the hug. It was then Danny could see a slight tear falling from Sam's eye. She, too, wiped it away before anyone else could see it.

Danny watched as she slightly smiled from a bit of embarrassment, and then resume her place on the wheelchair.

"It was a miracle, Danny," said Dr. Alan. "I just wish you could have seen it for yourself..."

"Seen what for myself/himself?" asked Danny and Sam at the same time. Both looked at each other awkwardly for a few seconds before their eyes shifted back onto the doctor.

"You didn't hear about what happened? You were almost lost!" exclaimed Dr. Alan.

"I was?" she asked. It was, of course, a big shock to her. She was almost dead?

"W-What saved me?" she asked.

"According to Dr. Alan," said Maddie, breaking in. "That ghost kid Danny Phantom saved you from the brink of death with some kind of strange power...what was that power again, Doc?"

"The ghost kid?" she asked. Her eyes shifted in his direction. Was this true? _Danny?_

Why was he avoiding her gaze? How did he get into the hospital?

"Tears," said the nurse. "It's unlike anything I've ever seen in my years of my own profession...it healed everything in Sam's body, from all the wounds on her lungs and somehow made her heart start...I have no idea..."

Sam was taking in all of this information by the handful...and with every bit, she was becoming more and more speechless at the second...and yet, somehow, was feeling closer to the person that was still sitting a few feet away from her, as she started tuning out the nurse's testimonial...

Danny...her best friend..._saved her life?_ _With his tears?_ How was that possible?

She tried looking at him, but he wouldn't meet her gaze. In fact, it either looked like he was blushing or wishing that they would stop talking about it. Either way he didn't want to join the fray.

She tried reaching for his hand, but he slowly pulled away from it. Was he _hiding_ something...?

"But still," said Jack, now starting to break down in his own miseries. "My daughter...why couldn't he save her? My first daughter..._why couldn't he save her?_" His voice started quivering.

After those words, Danny felt as if he was going to lose the contents of his stomach very soon.

"Please, Jack," said Maddie, trying to place him in another direction. "Please...not now...Danny's here..."

"I'm sorry," said Jack, hugging his wife in return. "It's just...why couldn't _both_ girls be saved? He brought them both here, so why couldn't he save both?"

"Both?" asked Sam. "What are you talking about?"

Danny looked at her in alarm. She didn't know that either? From the look of her face, he could tell that she was searching for the person he did not want to be talking about right now as her eyes started shifting around the room...

When she didn't find what she was looking for, she started questioning. "Jazz..." said Sam, a bit of fear in her voice. "Where's Jazz?"

An uncomfortable air quickly screened around the room, as all eyes quickly either looked down at the floor, away from Danny and Sam, or at each other.

Jack and Maddie, of course, were the most panicked, as they quickly looked at each other in alarm, as if they didn't want to say. They especially didn't want to speak of this in front of Danny. For support, they looked at the doctor for advice.

"Doctor, should we?" asked Maddie, very quietly.

Dr. Alan gave them a slight frown, and looked at the nurse next to him. After looking at each other eye to eye in silent conversation, it was followed by a slight nodding of the head.

Jack took a deep breath. He knew that he was in for it.

Taking a deep breath, Maddie said, "Danny, Sam...she's...Jazz is gone."

Sam gasped, putting her hand to her mouth, as she looked at Danny once again. His head was already down, his eyes looking like they were about to tear up. But he had done it a little too quickly. Noticing this change in her friend, one thing was clear. There was a reason that he wasn't looking at her. She automatically knew that he had known before, but wasn't saying it. Attempting to put two and two together, she started wondering if she had any connection at all with Jazz. From the air of everything right now, it looked like that that was the hidden truth.

Once again, she was trying to tell him that she was sorry. But once again by looking at him, she could tell that she might have made things worse. She already knew that asking about Jazz had most likely antagonized his already-shot feelings.

And of course, Danny didn't like what he was hearing. Though he knew what the answer was, realizing the truth once again was like living through hell twice. He was feeling that familiar urge again...the blame game...

"I'm sorry Mom and Dad, it's my fault...I should have watched her..." he said, his head turning down.

Maddie immediately went to her son. "No, it isn't, Danny..." she said, reaching up a hand to stroke his hair. "It's not your fault..."

She paused a second before taking another deep breath and saying, "It's ours."

"Yours?" asked Danny.

"I'm sorry about earlier, son," said Jack. "We seriously made a bad example last night, arguing with Sam's parents and getting thrown out...we shouldn't have yelled at you like that, Danny...we should be the ones who are sorry...we overreacted..."

Danny revisited that moment quite painfully...he really did feel at that point that he felt he was the blame for it all...

But as much as he hated them for saying that...he suddenly felt another great weight lift from his shoulders as he felt his parents free him from another part of the blame...pretty much everything was coming back into place...

Jack joined Maddie next to his son before all three joined together in a family hug.

But the bad thing was...there was one thing that wouldn't go back into place...this was his current family, with an empty hole in it. Jazz was still gone...

"Don't worry, son," said Jack, pulling away first. "We'll find that ghost kid for you...after what happened to Jazz...we'll find that ghost kid for you..."

Danny suddenly tightened his grip on his mother, before he slowly let go.

Maddie felt the sudden change in pressure. "Danny, are you all right?" she asked, looking at him in wonder.

"Y-yes..." he said, his voice quivering, trying to remain as calm as possible. He knew that he almost blew it right there. After silently cursing at himself in his head, he then turned his eyes towards the rest of the group and said, "Umm...would you mind -"

"Leaving you with your friends?" finished Maddie for him. "Sure, Danny," she said, motioning everyone to come out except for Tucker and Valerie. "I know that you all probably have a lot to talk about..."

"See you later, Valerie," said Damon, waving at her.

"Thanks," she said.

"Take your time," said Jack, closing the door behind him.

"Thanks, Dad," said Danny, waving behind him.

"Yeah, thank you, Mr. Fenton," said Tucker and Sam at the same time.

The door was now closed. It seemed to take a lifetime to do so...

...because now all four teenagers were in the room alone. But for some reason, nobody could think of anything to say. All were just caught up in the events, all at a loss for words...everyone had reasons right now to be absolutely silent to think of everything that just occurred...

States of consternation and agony flowed in every part of the room. Sam was still in shock out of the new bits of news she had heard. Tucker rubbed his neck as he looked down at the ground, speechless. Valerie, who walked to the door when everyone left, hadn't turned or moved from her spot as her head focused on a spot on the floor. And Danny was doing his best to keep himself from crying.

After much silence, one person was brave enough to break it.

"Danny, is this true?" It belonged to Sam.

He could tell that she was trying to be careful with her words. She obviously didn't know that Valerie knew about his secret and she was trying to ask a vague question.

"Yes, it is," he said. "All of it."

"Danny..." she said, her voice trailing and frantically looking at Valerie at the same time, trying to choose words. "I'm s-sorry about..."

Tucker, watching her struggling, cut in for her. "Sam, don't worry about it...she knows about Danny..."

Her eyes widened again, taking in another quick bit of information. She _knew_? And she wasn't killing him? First Danny saved her life, Jazz was gone, and now this? Just how long was she out? This was moving too fast for her...so much information, so many questions...

"She told me everything she knew about Danny," he said. "And how she watched him save you...I just had no idea how he did it...Danny, your tears saved Sam?"

Sam glanced down at the drops of water glistening on his cheeks, streaming in faint rivers and splashing down, staining Danny's bed sheets. Those...things...falling from his face...saved her? Those tears...that she knew were being shed about the thoughts of his sister..._saved_ her? Was this a new power? When did he get it? _How_ did he get it?

"Danny..." she asked. "Those tears..."

"It's a new power I somehow came up with..." he said. "I don't know how I got it...like all of my other powers, it just sort of...came."

Her face quickly glanced down to the floor, stopping herself in mid-question. It was obvious that he was still trying to get over the loss of his sister and she was just worsening it for him.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to-"

"Oh no," he said, quickly covering his tracks. "I didn't mean it that way...it's just...that...my tears, if there emotional stance behind them other than sadness, then I have the ability to heal..."

"You do?" she asked, now more confused than ever. "But...how did you get it in the first place?"

"I think you'd better explain this one," said Valerie, who had turned from her corner and was now facing the rest of the group. "She was, after all, asleep through all of this..."

Danny smirked. He knew that he was about to be in for a rough ride.

"Where do you want me to start?" he asked Sam.

"I want to know...what happened during you fight with Spectra." she said, pausing in mid-sentence for effect.

"Well..." he said. "I have a confession to make. I think...I was the one that made you end up here in the first place."

"The first place?"

"Spectra was beating the heck out of me, and there didn't seem to be any way that I could defeat her...I started getting angry at her, angry at myself. It soon got to a point where my hatred got so great that something weird happened...it was like I was switching bodies with something, but I knew that after that happened, I had completely lost control of myself...I didn't know what I was doing..."

Sam's heart froze...the green ray of light she remembered seeing before she was out...

"That dark side of me...to try to finish off Spectra, decided to send off my most powerful attack...but I knew that it was too dangerous, all I remember is trying to regain control of my body, but for some reason it was only in the nick of time that I was able to regain control...but the wail was already in effect...I had to change its course before it killed someone..."

He suddenly stopped, now starting to shake. "But unfortunately...the area I chose..."

"...was the place that Jazz and I accidentally got into the way." she interrupted, so he wouldn't have to finish.

It was painful to confess, but he knew there was no sense of lying right now. He nodded, still not keeping an eye on her. He wondered what she could be thinking...she knew that he was somewhat responsible for sending her here.

"Sam...I understand...if you want to yell at me right now..." he said, waiting.

_"Who wouldn't?"_ he thought.

But for some reason, Sam wasn't saying a word at all...she just sat there, completely white and thoughtful. He wondered why she was taking so long, until he found a hand on his knee.

Surprised, he saw that she wasn't angry, but her face was full of sadness.

"S-Sam?" he said.

"Danny, why would I? You saved me from dying..."

"But I was the idiot that made you get here in the first place! I was the reason that you ended up here! I was the one responsible for Jazz's death!"

"Danny, do you always have to blame yourself? Yes, Spectra was the one that got you all riled up in the first place, but don't you think that this could've happened to anyone?"

"Yeah, dude," said Tucker, breaking in. "Even if you're half-ghost, half of you is _still_ human. I've said this before, but for some reason, you didn't listen to me..."

Danny could recall that, since he tried to commit suicide right after heard that speech from Tucker...he really felt that what he did was unfair...

"Spectra may have used that against you, sure...but having feelings is what separates you from a ghost - heck...from anything!" said Valerie, joining in.

Sam then spoke. "Danny, I know that you think that having emotional feelings may have been a burden...but seriously, without them, what are you? An empty shell that doesn't know how to live. A feeling is something that will be part of you...its what separates you from being a full-ghost...they're only wandering spirits trying to finish what they left behind...they have no other purpose, or feeling, left inside of them..."

As true as it was, something was still missing...

If Jazz was a ghost...why did she have all of those feelings when he saw her both of those times? It didn't make sense...

That was, until a lightbulb finally went off in his brain. The bond...

Could a bond between brother and sister really be that powerful? Was the reason that she came back was to help her brother?

Things started falling into place...he seemed to be finding the answers to the questions that he had been so desperate before to find answers to, and was suddenly striking him...

The reason Spectra had lost that final fight was because of his bond with his sister...Spectra had no ties with anyone...he had his sister...she helped him in the end because of that...

The same weapon that Spectra had been using against him all this time turned out to be the weapon that ended up defeating her in the end...because of his emotional bond with his sister, it helped Jazz come back and help him defeat her...

And that was even when she was a ghost...

He resumed the tears. Then why did she have to die? It just didn't seem fair at all...she had helped him so much...and even allowed herself to be sacrificed...

...the whole of it was to save his best friend...the person he had cared about so much...

Sam would never know the lengths that Jazz had gone through...

Danny's eyes shifted towards a calendar hanging on the door in his room. It was only two days away from Christmas...

He couldn't believe it...all of this time, he had only been thinking about his own problems to realize that it was still the holiday season...

But then he realized that none of the gifts that he would ever receive could ever hold a candle to Jazz's...she was the one who had always kept his secret, always helping him keep his head on straight...always giving him advice...even putting her own life essence into his tears so that he could save another...

His head went down, and he started crying again from new emotions...

"Danny..." said Sam, not knowing his reasons for his tears. "...you shouldn't be blamed for this...you helped save me, somehow...I should be the one that should be thanking you, not in any way at all be angry at you..."

She reached her hand out to his, which he slowly closed upon. She smiled.

"Was that the emotional stance that you felt, knowing that Jazz was always there to help you...was that what motivated you tears?" she asked.

The answer was no, but Danny said "Yes."

"I'm sorry that Jazz died, Danny," said Sam. "I know this must be really hard for you...losing your sister..."

"It is," he said sheepishly, slowly pulling his hand away from hers. There was another battle going on in his head. Should he tell her...?

"I'm sure you tried to help Jazz in the same way that you helped me..." she said. "I'm sorry, Danny, I really am..."

That was almost heartbreaking to hear...she had no idea...

Meanwhile, Sam wasn't getting it...why was he so reluctant in saying Jazz's name? Was it true? Did his sister have anything to do with her own life? Whatever it was, it looked like it was eating away at him...

So she almost had the same question as Jack. If Danny was able to save her, then why wasn't he able to help Jazz?

Danny looked up from his gaze to see Sam's face. She was looking at him in way that he never felt before, almost like she was trying to pierce into his own mind, yet at the same time trying to retain an air of innocence.

It was that innocence that really got to him...he didn't want to break it apart. Telling her would have made her frightened, causing a chain reaction of endless questions that he knew he couldn't answer...

This could include probing into his personal thoughts...

"Danny?" asked Sam, smiling weakly. "Are you OK?"

The smile sealed it. He had to say something else...

"I'm fine," he said. "I-I'm just angry at myself, I guess..."

"Why?"

"Be-because after I saved you, I tried going after Jazz, but in the middle of trying to get to her, I was overcome with exhaustion...I...fell unconscious before I was able to get to her..."

Sam put a hand to her mouth. "Oh...Danny..."

"When I came to...I was here...I never had the ability to save Jazz..." Danny ended his bluff by putting his head down and even shedding a tear.

And to his great fortune, Sam was completely caught by it, as she suddenly leaned forward again and gave him a hug. He weakly hugged back, as she said, "I'm sorry, Danny, I had no idea..."

As he looked forward, he saw the person ahead of him who obviously knew of his bluff. With her eyes, she asked why he didn't tell the truth.

But then, through Sam, he looked at her in a certain way that she only knew too well.

And soonafter, everything suddenly became clear to her. She certainly knew the fears of his personal life - she understood. Slightly nodding to herself, she slightly smiled, knowing of his accomplishments.

Yet at the same time, she was just watching how peaceful they seemed to look together...it was hard to say it, but...for some reason, she just, saw...how much she didn't want to break that.

She, herself, liked him, that was for sure...but even with the resolution between them, she felt that same way she felt that one day after the week they spent together, after watching the little reunion.

A best friend, yes...but...just...a friend.

"Danny, your sister always loved you," said Sam, breaking out of the hug. "I'm sure you'll never forget that...please, stop blaming yourself...believe me, even I know, for a fact, Jazz didn't die in vain...she was only trying to help you...and you were always lucky to have a sister like her..."

"Thank you, Sam," he said, taking the true facts to heart. "I think that I'm lucky to have a friend like you..."

Sam slowly broke away, slightly blushing, and slightly flustered. "Yeah, well..." she said, her voice trailing away.

Tucker laughed slightly to himself, and Valerie did the same.

Valerie laughed a little too loudly, however, because it was then Sam remembered Valerie standing in the back corner over there. She suddenly remembered that she was now a holder of Danny's secret. She didn't have any idea what to say to her, except...

"...Valerie, please, I'm really sorry -"

"Don't worry, Sam," said Valerie, cutting her off. "I know that you were trying to protect Danny about his secret..."

Danny was aghast. "But Val, I..."

"I knew you would have told me eventually, anyway," she said plainly. "But the person I should be blaming for my problems is me...I was so focused on destroying the things I thought were ruining my life, without knowing the hidden truths of the things I was missing out on. A friend."

"But Valerie..." tried Danny again.

"I know my house was destroyed, but Danny, at least I know now that it was an accident, and not on purpose. And I also know another thing. You taught me that some ghosts _can_ be trusted." She walked over to Danny. "You were the one that helped me understand that...and I can't even determine how important that is now to me."

Sam watched them silently, and started thinking. If Valerie could like him even though she finally knew of his secret, then maybe there really was a friendship there...

Or something more...

She finally saw that bond between him and Valerie. But whatever that was, she decided she couldn't break it...whichever path Danny chose, she realized it had to be his own decision...

She did the only thing she could do...smile.

Tucker was almost afraid to speak, as he asked a question. "So...you're cool with it?"

Valerie laughed at his query, as if he should have already known the answer. "Of course I am." She then turned to Danny. "Don't worry, Danny, I won't tell a soul."

Sam smiled at her. She knew automatically that if she could go from ghost hunter to a friend that Danny trusted with his secret, there was definitely something there. "We trust you, Valerie."

Valerie smiled back. It certainly was a great feeling inside of her, knowing that feeling of being accepted into a circle of friends. And these weren't people that cared for her money or looks...they were people who cared about her unique self.

But what was really getting at her right now was why Danny was withholding all of that information. He didn't even mention the fact that Jazz was the one that helped him beat Spectra in the end and was also the one that truly gave him that power of healing tears. Nor did he even mention the way that...

"Valerie, how did you find out about Danny's powers?" asked Sam.

She knew she was in for it. "Danny de-transformed in front of me before he took you and Jazz to the hospital," she said. "I think you can pretty much figure out the rest from there..."

Sam thought of the way Valerie was before the showdown...it really must have been a revelation. Though there was trust, she knew that it would be a little bit before true trust could be established, because of their past. It was weird to make a friend out of someone she once considered an enemy. But it seemed that things would be all right eventually.

Valerie, after all, knew about Danny's greatest secret...

"Well, man," said Tucker. "We'd better get going...you'll probably want to rest right now..."

"Yeah," said Sam. "I think so, too..."

"I agree," said Valerie. "We've been here long enough..."

"Will you guys see me later?" he asked.

"Sure," said Tucker, smiling. "We're always here for you, man."

"Thanks," said Danny, putting his hand up to high five, and Tucker connecting with it.

"See you, man," he said, leaving the room first.

"Bye, Danny," said Sam, giving him one last hug. "And thank you..."

"No, thank _you,_" he said.

Sam gave a smile before she left, as well.

"Well, that was fun," said Valerie, already stepping out of the room. "See you, Danny."

"Huh?" he said. "Hey, wait, Valerie...hold on..."

"Yes?" she asked.

"Stay for a second...I want to talk with you."

She crossed back to Danny's side. "What is it?"

"Listen, Val, I'm sorry that I ever..."

"Hey," she said. "I already said don't worry about it. I know how it must have been like for you all those times...I don't blame you for it anymore...we're cool."

Danny gave a weak smile to her.

"Why didn't you tell Sam the truth?" she asked.

His shoulders drooped slightly. "There are so many things attached to that truth that I didn't want to confess at that point..." he said. "That would've included our little stand-off before Sam and Jazz got hurt. If I told her, that would have meant saying nearly everything..."

Valerie was a little touched that he didn't want to talk about how they were still enemies, but she still didn't buy it off very well. "But she deserves to hear the whole of it," said Valerie. "She is, after all, your best friend."

"But...she just seems so happy right now," he said. "Telling her the truth that my sister transferred her own life to my tears for the sole purpose of saving her is...well...something I can't say right now..."

It didn't matter that he didn't say it, but Valerie could read him like a book. He was still in denial...

"Besides," said Danny. "What happened between us...that should be _our_ little secret." He winked at her.

Valerie blushed almost futilely. Perhaps...maybe...there was...?

"But what about your parents?" asked Valerie to Danny. "They're professional ghost hunters...are you ever going to tell them?"

Danny's eye twitched involuntarily at the thought. "I don't know," he said truthfully. "It pains me every day thinking about it...I want to tell them, but if I tell them right now, then that would mean having to explain to them about Jazz..."

"But you'll have to explain to them eventually...this isn't something you can hide for all of your life..."

"I know," he said. "But even you'll agree...things are too complicated right now...I'll tell them, I promise I will, eventually..."

Valerie smiled. "All right, I understand."

They stared at each other awkwardly for a few seconds before she said, "All right, I think I'd better go..."

He smiled. "OK, see you later, Val."

With one final smile, she turned away from him, and took a few steps. But then, Danny watched as she suddenly stopped before she could exit the room. He assumed something was wrong.

"Valerie? Are you...?

He didn't finish. The next thing he knew, he ran back to him and gave him a surprise hug.

"Huh?" he said out loud.

"I'm sorry..." she said, a bit out of breath. "But, thank you, Danny, for everything...you don't know how much this means to me..."

"No prob," he said, hugging her back. "I'm here."

Lifting away and now starting to exit the room for real, Valerie had one last thing on her mind that she wanted to say. "You know, Danny, she did care about you, a lot more than you think..."

"She's my best friend," he said automatically. "I won't be sure of that..."

Valerie's left eyebrow rose. "Whoever said I was talking about Sam?" she asked in a tone that Tucker always tortured him with.

Danny almost immediately recognized his mistake and started panicking. "What! Hey, wait a minute!" he yelled, just as she was closing the door. "Val, wait a minute!"

_"Heh heh..." _she thought to herself, listening to his cries beyond the door, knowing how much fun this was going to be from now on.

_"Clueless..."_

_A/N: Almost finished, guys...all that's left is the final resolution...and once again, sorry about the wait._

_Yes, I know, about Valerie's and Sam's thoughts, but there were many challenges behind making a decision like that. I'm a big fan of either one, but I've got to follow the idea of the show right now, making it a little believable into Danny's struggle to make that final decision in the end. But there's also another reason...one I currently will not say._

_Well, I don't want to spoil it, so can you trust me to wait for the final chapter?_


	20. Falling Snow

_A/N: And so we reach the end, finally! After eight months, this story is now finished! I hope all you reading had a fun time reading this, like I had a fun time writing this - I'm just a bit sad that now I've got to close it out. But then again, maybe not, since this winter story is now finished in the middle of summer!_

_Well, let's finish this, shall we? The final chapter is now here for your enjoyment._

_**Chapter 20 - Falling Snow**_

_---The Ghost Zone---_

Somewhere in the dark reaches of this endless abyss was a realm. In this realm, there wasonly one person that lived there, a man that barely anyone knew. One could make that judgment to say that he was a forgotten soul, a ghost just trying to cope with his afterlife.

However, he was quite the opposite. He was not a ghost at all, but some type of special spirit that resided everywhere. His essence could be found in all parts of the universe. The only reason that no one seemed to know about him was that he was too ingrained a part of everyday life, and no one ever seemed to give him a second glance. He was taken for granted; but then again, he would always be taken for granted, until that time when people would suddenly try and reach him, which was an impossibility.

Why he decided to take up residence in the Ghost Zone would forever be a mystery. He was one of the most powerful beings of all. The reason? He had the ability to see everything.

He was the Master of Time, Clockwork. He knew of all the events and all of the twists and turns that could have been made and what would have been done to either enter them, or avoid them. And it was all controlled by a simple staff.

Clockwork usually spent most of his days alone, and for some reason, he liked it that way. But if he knew that there could have been a better event that could have taken place, that would be the time when he had to meddle. He would often stop time and often change one or two things, often helping making the situation for the better.

He, of course, had to do it in secret. Being seen was something that he knew could almost never risk, because although he lived on his own, he was always carefully monitored.

This was the reason very few beings knew of his existence as the one that controlled all time. There were but five in total. Half of them were ghosts, while the other half were humans. The math, of course, seems impossible, but it was to be kept in mind that one of these beings was a half-ghost, and the two humans happened to be this half-ghost's best friends. The two ghosts that knew about him, the Observants, were the ones that were forever watching over him.

Clockwork was looking into glimpses of the future when someone tapped him on the shoulder.

"I've been waiting for you," he said, not facing his guests. "Is there something you want with me?"

"Clockwork," said one of the Observants. "what was that all about?"

"What was what?" the Master of Time asked nonchalantly, winding one of the many knobs on his staff.

"The boy has taken a terrible loss and we have been watching for most of the time. He seems to be blaming himself for the most part."

"I can assure you that things will eventually return to their normal state," said Clockwork.

"Normal state? What I don't understand is why the sister of Danny Phantom had to perish so unexpectedly. Why is it that you're not telling us the reasons? We still cannot figure out the motives here, Clockwork." The Observant who spoke then folded his hands across his chest.

"Don't worry, you won't have to," said Clockwork, starting to wind another knob on his staff.

"What I'm worried about now is what the boy's choices will now be now he is without his sister," said the other Observant. "I continues with these fears that these choices could forever be the ruins of the future." As he spoke, peered nervously with his one large eye at a thermos kept under Clockwork's forever close watch. "What is another one is created...?" he said, his voice trailing off.

"I've told you before," said Clockwork, his staff finished from winding and his form changing into an old man. "Her death is something that both parties have learned to accept -"

"What do you mean by 'accept'?" said of the Observants, interrupting. "You know very well that nothing outshines death in the matter of negative issues..."

Clockwork sighed.

"Once again, you both cease to understand the finer points," said Clockwork, a bit of agitation in his voice. "A death and a sacrifice are two completely separate things. The girl did not merely die, but she allowed herself to be placed in that position. This, in itself, is the true reasoning behind all of it. The boy has learned of her notions and is attempting to work the best of it, although they are now separated."

"How are you sure that he is not going to turn back on it?" asked one of them.

"Because," said Clockwork, pausing for effect. "I can trust him."

"You're putting risk into all of mankind into just a matter of trust?" asked one of the Observants incredulously. "This is outrageous! Unbelievable! Unthinkable..."

"And understandable," said the Master of Time, interrupting, and changing into his boyish form. "Jazz and Danny have this strong bond that I have always been sensing between them. I know for fact that this bond will never be unbroken between the two of them."

"What are you saying, Clockwork?" asked one of the Observants.

"Jazz does not merely exist as one of the dead, but as a guardian for Danny," he said simply. "I have seen the glimpses of the future with this connection in mind, and I have already seen that the unfinished business here is the factor that will keep the future from turning bleak. Both will have to eventually understand each other's notions, and this can be accomplished."

"You mean, she can still help him?"

"Of course," he said, grinning. "Until that time comes, yes, as a spirit, she can still help him."

The idea was almost unheard of. Was Jazz suddenly going to obtain powers and help Danny in this way? If so, how?

"Is there ever going to be a way for them both to ever find each other's paths?" asked one of the Observants.

"What do you mean?" asked Clockwork.

"What I'm asking is, will they ever see this happening sometime in the near future, or will they just continue wondering about all these events? What if this future is something that may not be reached?"

Clockwork slightly grinned, before he changed back into his adulthood. "You two are called the Observants. I shall let you carry on your names by letting you observe and then see what I am somewhat implying."

The statement left a bad taste in each of the Observants' mouths (considering if they had one). Furious, they stmped away before floating back to their own lair, leaving the Master of Time alone once again. However, he seemed to be a bit relieved that he was once again free of theri presence.

Turing aside to himself, he smiled, looking at a different future that only he currently knew about. The problem was that it would take a lot of hardships to get to that future, and there was one thing that would have to be done in order to get where it was supposed to be. And he knew quite well that Danny was still the stubborn type; if he could allow the triggering event to take place, then he would have to establish what was foresaid.

But Clockwork once said himself that he was the Master of Time; not the person who could come up with intentions with certain happenings. They just occurred.

He had that undying faith in him. Ever since he knew that he was responsible for Danny, he knew that he would have to trust his actions. But as things were currently turning out for him, it seemed like a bright future ahead.

The Master of Time sighed, as he now peered into the present. He laughed a bit, as he saw Danny starting to fall asleep, his head resting on a table. Typical teenager.

Clockwork internally grinned, as he thought of Danny's new power. Having faith and believing...no wonder those tears suddenly became that way...

He had come so far, shedding so many of them. He was actually quite proud that he was able to get through it all. It really had been a difficult part of his life.

Clockwork had only one last bit of advice for him, as he started thinking to himself.

_"Be careful, Danny,"_said Clockwork, finishing. _"For us both, be careful..."_

_---Amity Park---_

"Huh?" asked Danny to no one in particular.

His head got up from the table, where he had started to take a nap. He quickly rubbed his eyes and made a quick glance of his surroundings.

Was someone talking to him? He searched, but there didn't seem to be a soul around.

He was in the Nasty Burger, which was open for Christmas Eve, which happened to be today. He was out of the hospital after having recovered from his wounds, and Sam and Tucker were out of there, too, where she made a full recovery and was out of her wheelchair, yet Tucker had to continue using his crutches.

Now he remembered. He was waiting for them to meet him here. They were probably still getting ready.

For some reason, when he woke up that day, he, for the same strange reasons, didn't feel like himself at all. He decided to just walk straight to the Nasty Burger and keep his promise right there.

Besides, he would have been late. He usually got a ride from Jazz.

Her name almost made him shiver. It had been a couple of days since she died, and it was still like a never-ending nuisance that wouldn't disappear.

But he knew that he had to stop thinking that way. This isn't what Jazz wanted; she wanted him to be as strong as possible. And now that they were apart, it looked like that things would eventually have to be that way.

But he remembered that bond - the one he instantly realized that night when her spirit was free. He found that confidence that he desperately needed to feel...and ending up saving Sam's life.

Jazz would forever be helping him, and he knew that. She would _always _be there, even if she wasn't around...

Danny's thoughts suddenly turned to light, as he then visited flashbacks. They would be moments that he would always remember.

And finally, the rest of his guilt was finally let free into the cold air. No longer did he feel that the entire situation was his doing.

_"Thank you..."_ he said softly, hoping that she would hear. _"Thank you..."_

"Thanks for what?" said a voice behind him.

Danny instantly opened his eyes and looked behind him. It was Valerie, dressed in her Nasty Burger outfit.

"Valerie?" he asked. "What are you doing here? I didn't know you were working today."

"I just got off shift," she said. They gave me an early morning shift to clean up one of the grills."

"Ouch," he said.

"Yeah, but at least I'm finally finished. I've got the rest of the month to myself, though. I finally got that vacation that I have been asking for."

Danny laughed slightly under his breath.

"Anyway, Danny, what are _you_ doing here? I thought you'd be out with Sam and Tucker right now."

"Oh, I was just waiting for them here," he said. "They'll be coming down shortly, for all I know."

"But why here? Why not wait at one of your houses, or something?"

"Well...we like to hang out here," he put simply. "We usually eat a little lunch before we do all that stuff."

"Ah," she said.

Valerie watched as Danny put his head back down and continued waiting for his friends. It was almost as if he did it in a sad manner. She had to ask.

"Danny? Are you OK?" she asked.

"Huh?" he said, his head jerking back up.

"Is it Jazz?" she asked.

He laughed again. "No," he said. "Why do you ask?"

"You still don't really act like yourself," she said. "I still hope that you're not blaming yourself."

"Of course not," he said. "It's...just taking me a while to recover. I mean, if you had a sibling, wouldn't you feel this way?"

"I guess," she said.

Both teens remained silent for a few moments, until...

"She did care a lot about you, Danny," she said.

"I know she did," said Danny. "I'm grateful that she was always there, and still is,"

The sentence sort of hurt Valerie inside, because once again, she felt that same kind of feeling that she experienced when she saw the ghostly brother and sister hugging each other the night he found a new power.

"Danny, I envy you," she said.

This was a first. "What?" he asked.

"I wish I could have had a sister like that," she answered. "Your bond with Jazz...I just...always wanted something like that. But I never had any siblings. She's with you until the end."

He smiled internally. Danny could feel her jealousy, but he decided not to say a word about it.

Instead, there was something else that was bugging him. That night in the hospital...

"Umm...Valerie, speaking about the hospital, what happened after I passed out? The only thing I remember is...blackness..."

And worse, he also felt some kind of strange coldness going up and down his body as he was falling...

And then it hit him. It was his de-transformation. Did the hospital staff know about his secret now? He felt like he was going to panic.

Valerie rubbed the back of her neck, yet somehow maintained a straight face. Maybe...they didn't?

"Well, Danny," she said. "After that little light show that you put on for the hospital staff, you were falling towards the ground. Dr. Alan caught you, but something weird happened."

"Did I de-transform?" he asked.

"Well, no, not yet," she said. "You powers went sort of haywire, and then for some reason, you went right through his hands and ended up falling through the floor."

"My intangibility?" he asked. "But...I didn't feel it happening..."

"Well, I'm not the one that knows about your powers," said Valerie. "But what I remember is that Alan and the others tried to go after you, since you fell outside. They never found the ghostly you, but then I came across your own self."

"What?" asked Danny. "I don't get it."

She smiled. "I found you lying face-down next to that rose bush you fell on top of," she said. "I made sure that you weren't hurt, then I called the staff over, claiming that I found you. They rushed over, and that's when the rest of the story takes place, after you woke up."

Danny still couldn't believe it. He thought for sure that he was going to be seen...

How did he suddenly become intangible at that perfect moment? It didn't make any sense at all.

But all he knew was that he was going to be all right. His secret was still safe, at least, for now...

Valerie was about to say something else, until she heard a door open behind her. Peering into the light, she instantly recognized the faces of Sam and Tucker.

"Valerie!" shouted Tucker, trying to get over to her on his crutches. "What's up?"

"Not much," she said, walking over to him. "What's up with you, Sam? You're looking a lot better."

Danny had to agree. She looked like she was never in an accident at all, despite the scars on her face. She was already out of the wheelchair and was walking. Simply amazing.

"I'm good, Valerie, thanks," she said. "I would be a lot better if i didn't have to give Paulina that gift just now."

"Oh," said Valerie. "You were her secret admirer? I'm sorry."

"Nah, don't worry about it," she said. "Besides, she didn't want to take it anyway. Paulina accused me of booby-trapping it somehow if she ever put it on, so she made me keep it."

"Ouch," said Valerie. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault," she said. Then she noticed the person behind her.

"Danny!" she exclaimed. "You OK? You haven't spoken a word!"

"Oh yeah, I'm fine," he said, starting to get up and walk towards her. But then his legs almost buckled beneath him, for he was still kind of weak. Sam rushed over and caught him in time before he fell to the floor.

"Ugh, thanks Sam," he said.

"Don't mention it," she said, a bit of laughter in her voice. "Consider us even."

Danny also laughed a bit slightly.

Valerie watched the pair again, and looked over at the clumsy Tucker now starting to hobble over towards them. She knew that she'd been there a while, and knew they probably had a lot to talk about. She didn't want to interfere.

"Well, I'd better get going," she said to the trio. "I've got some things to take care of,"

Tucker looked behind him in surprise. "Valerie? Hey, wait a second!"

She stopped. "Huh?" she asked, turning around.

"Hang out with us," said Sam. "We can always use a fourth member. Besides, you should take a day for yourself. You're always working."

"Oh no," she said. "My dad got his bonus at Axion and we're doing some remodeling on the apartment," she said.

"You can do that another day," said Danny, suddenly remembering something else. "Besides, I still haven't given you something."

He put a hand underneath the table and pulled out a wrapped box.

Valerie was now caught off guard in surprise. All this time..._him...?_

"Merry Christmas, Val," he said, standing up and walking her Secret Santa gift over to her.

"Danny..." she said, accepting the gift. "It was you?"

"Yes," said Danny. "I'm actually kind of glad you didn't look under the table. I almost forgot all about it!"

"That's pretty typical of you, Danny," said Sam, laughing. "That sort of reminds me of the time when you left my surprise birthday present in the open."

Valerie tore off the wrapping paper and tossed the bow into the trash. Then, on top of the box was a note.

_I heard you didn't have one of these yet, so I decided to get one for you. Hope you enjoy this._

_Danny_

_"What is it?"_ she wondered. She then opened the box and peeked behind some extra tissue paper.

And there lay a photo album. It was the exact same one that she had been trying to save up for, because it was terribly expensive. She had a lot of photos that she had been trying to find a place for, but she could never find the time to buy an album. She was hunting ghosts all the time.

Valerie looked at her gift for a while. It was one of the best a friend had ever given her.

Opening it, she saw there was already a photograph inside. It was a day that the four of them were hanging out, before all of this ghost nonsense became a part of all their lives.

"Thank you, Danny," she said, walking over and giving him a hug. "It's great."

"Heh, I knew you'd like it," said Danny, hugging her back.

After breaking away from each other, Valerie put the album in her backpack. "Well, I'd better go," she said.

"Oh, come on!" said Tucker. "Why won't you hang out?"

Valerie looked at him in wonder. This was extremely strange to her. After spending a while by herself, it felt odd to be asked to hang out by people. She had been doing it for so long.

"Besides," said Danny. "There's that movie currently playing that we were all going to see. It was called -"

But, he never finished. Instead, he felt a chill run down his spine.

"Danny?" asked Sam behind him. "What's wrong?"

Her answer was an ectoplasmic smoke that came out of his mouth, followed by a shiver.

_"HAHA!"_ yelled an all-too familiar voice behind all four of them. _"BEWARE! I am the Box Ghost!"_ He floated down to the package that once held Valerie's present.

_"Now that it is void of its contents, its marvelous squareness shall be mine!"_

"Oh man, not you again," said Danny, rolling his eyes.

"Don't you have anything better to do?" asked Sam.

_"I am the Box Ghost! There is nothing better to do!"_

"Wow, is that sad," said Tucker, taking out a Fenton Thermos and throwing it to Danny. "Get rid of him, Danny."

"No problem," he said, jumping out of his seat. _"Going GHOST!"_

His arms raising in the air, the two blue rings of ectoplasmic light appeared and transformed him back into Danny Phantom.

_"YAH!"_ screamed the Box Ghost. _"Uhh...BEWARE!"_ He phased out of the building before something could be done to him.

"HEY!" he screamed. "Get back here!" He quickly phased through the building after the blue specter.

"Hey Danny!" yelled Valerie, turning into her ghost hunter mode. "Let _me _have a piece of that guy!" Then, running out of the building, her jet-sled came out of her shoes and she started flying the the same direction.

Sam and Tucker laughed on the ground at the Box Ghost's fate as they ran outside to watch. He had two to worry about now.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

_"Some things will never change," _she thought.

Far up in the clouds, someone was watching them with a smile on her face. It was the person that had made a promise that she would always be there, and she was beaming down on him proudly, almost like his very own guardian angel.

No, she _was_ his guardian. But she was currently just beaming down on him, looking at how much fun he was having, and still thinking about how proud she still was of him.

_"I knew you could do it, Danny..."_ she said. _"And all it took was a little of my own help..."_

She was the one who had made him intangible out of the sight of the hospital staff. She felt great that she was now getting used to her abilities.

As she continued watching, something floated by her face. It looked somewhat like a puff of white.

Looking up, she saw that there were now tons of them right above her head. She instantly knew what it was.

Instead of the rain that had been falling for the past days, things had now changed for the better. It was the symbolic snow.

A warm feeling passed through her. She knew that the future was looking brighter than before.

_"Merry Christmas, Danny,"_ she said to herself, a smile forming on her face.

And off she flew in her free form, waiting for that very time, when she knew that he'd need her again.

Because even as a ghost, she would always be there...

_**THE END**_

_A/N: And it comes to a close. Thank you to all that took the time to read. Heh, if I write another story, I'd better make a promise to myself that I'd better not let it take this long in the future._

_**SPECIAL THANKS TO:** Evilevergreen, Anne Camp aka Obi-quiet, A. Nonymous, Spongewolf, SummersSixEcho, InsanePirate, WingsOfMorphius (thanks for the C2), definenormalAB, Leppers, silvermoonphantom (thanks for the C2), crystal, The Person Who Rights, Crazy Billie Joe Loving Freak, Miss Selarne, Laryna6, Zarz, Sasia, evilchik, Pieling, xheartkreuzx, Mistress of Darkness, Diamond-Wind, Nikki, TheDashLikes, animegurl088, Mizuki hikari, Jayne, Ryo Hoshi, zombie-rodeo-frog, darkmoonwriter13, dramaqueen07, Ginger Guardian Angel, Fuzzy, fang 50, The Fatalist, Straying Life, DraconWolf88, Jodi Crystal, Katrina Kaiba, TayloWolf, CrazyCosmoFan, alboc, Ari-Griffin_

_To those I forgot, I thank you all as well. And more thanks to those who either faved this or kept a watch on it, once again, thanks._

_Until then, see you all later - it's been a fun ride._

_BlackShadow875_


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